A New Dawn
by Bradleyo
Summary: My story begins just a few weeks before the standoff between the Cullens and the Volturi, which takes place toward the end of Breaking Dawn. The story is told from the perspective of a new character, Brady Dawn.
1. Chapter 1

2

A NEW DAWN

**Introduction**

I felt a need to add this introduction page before anyone actually started to read the story. I had previously posted this story a year ago, and while most readers loved the story and read it multiple times, there were a few who didn't enjoy the story for a couple of reasons. However, I am reposting the story because I believe it is an incredible love story.

Due to the few who didn't enjoy the story, I have created this introduction as a way of allowing those who might not enjoy such a story to opt out of reading before they even start.

My story involves the addition of a completely new character and the story is told from his point of view. While many of the original characters have a part in the story, it does not specifically revolve around any of the 'main' characters. My story starts during the last part of "Breaking Dawn"- but involves a completely new ending and continuation beyond the book.

I do not believe that an author should have to forewarn people about the various storylines or plot twists in ahead of time- that is what makes a story fun to read. Stating such would be the same as posting a spoiler, which takes all of the fun out of actually reading the story.

Therefore, here are some vague disclaimers-

If Bella is your favorite character, you probably will not like this story.

If you are a diehard Twilight purist, you will probably not like this story.

If you are a social conservative or are a prejudice person in any way, you will not like this story.

However-

If you love romance and emotional angst, you will like this story.

If you enjoy action sequences and true kick-butt heroes, you will like this story.

If you are the type of reader who likes surprises, you will like this story.

If you are an anime fan, especially yaoi anime, you will really love this story!

So with all of that being said, I request that you please do not use the 'Review' feature to ask questions- if you want to know something, send me a message directly. I also ask that if you post a review, please do not post any storyline spoilers (without stating such)- that is just plain rude and disrespectful for future readers. Just because you might not like the content, does not mean others won't- so don't spoil their enjoyment because of your own personal views of certain subject matters.

If you enter with an open mind, I do not believe you will be disappointed.

Thank you.

**Prologue**

It came as no surprise to any of us, that he wasn't included in Bella's memoirs; after all, it wouldn't make for good reading if the heroine of the story found herself playing second fiddle to someone else at the end.

As expected, most people believed that the _Twilight_ series was simply a work of fiction, but for those involved, we know the truth. However, leaving him out of the story completely was a tad bit harsh in any case, although, this opened the door for him to share the true account of what happened during the climactic standoff between the Cullens and the Volturi, and the terrible tragedy that followed.

His name is Brady, and this is his story.

-Edward Cullen


	2. Chapter 2

1

A NEW DAWN

**Preface**

"It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped" –Anthony Robbins

Here at my feet lay the one that I loved, dying from the wounds inflicted by vampires. I was sickened beyond words, my frantic thoughts wouldn't cease, and the tears just kept flowing. I now realized that I had made a huge mistake by lying to the others and going off on my own, if only we had gone together, at least there would be a doctor here now. Instead, I was standing here useless, watching the blood pour out of the gaping wounds, unsure of how to proceed.

I had an idea, but would it really work, I just didn't know. There was a voice deep within me that was shouting that it was the only way, yet I hesitated, trying to sift through all of the memories that I had acquired, hoping to find an answer.

When I had exhausted all avenues of thought, I finally made a decision, a decision that would forever alter all of our lives.


	3. Chapter 3

6

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 1**

_Drawn_

I grew up virtually alone, having been raised outside a small farming town in West Central Wisconsin; too far from town, too far from anyone to develop any close friendships. Maybe it was for the best, because I was never what people would call a typical child, although on the outside I didn't appear unusual. It was just, from the time I could remember, I always felt different from everyone else; I didn't fit in anywhere.

During my junior year in high school, I made a last ditch attempt at "fitting in"; I joined the debate team. Problems arose, however, as our advisor continuously singled me out for praise, and even arbitrarily made me the captain of the team. It was that act, which caused me to become completely ostracized within the entire school; previously I had only been invisible to _most_ people. The promotion however, led to a physical confrontation with the former captain, Brent, a senior, who was very bitter about being displaced. Brent was unusual for the debate team; he was tall, lean and muscular, looking more like a basketball player than a debate nerd.

"I suppose you think you're better than me now," Brent said as he shoved me up against the lockers, holding me there with one hand, as the other clenched into a fist.

"I didn't ask to become captain, that wasn't my idea," I said.

"Then perhaps you should step down," he demanded, moving his face closer to mine.

I couldn't help but wrinkle my nose in disgust, his breath was horrible, unfortunately, this act was perceived as something else.

"So you _do_ think that you're better than me, you arrogant little…", was all that I heard as his fist crashed into my face. Apparently, my head bounced off the lockers at the same time, causing me to lose consciousness. When I awoke, I was on the floor; blood was streaming from my nose. Later that day, I quit the debate team completely, but vowed never to endure a physical attack like that again.

I then began trying to train myself in martial arts. I purchased a few books and videos, and continuously studied martial arts movies and tried to imitate what I saw. However, I didn't feel that it was enough, so I convinced my parents to let me join a local taekwondo school.

For several months, I practiced earnestly, but began to feel 'lacking' in regards to my training. I then began working at incorporating taekwondo movements into the kung fu movements that I had been practicing with previously. I found that I had an uncanny knack for combining these skills, and I personally felt that I was improving. Unfortunately, my taekwondo instructor, Master Cho, did not agree with my assessment, and found it insulting that I was "bastardizing" his teachings. Subsequently, he forbade me to practice using any of my new skills. I tried to comply, but I just couldn't compete with the other students when utilizing just the taekwondo movements. It was during one sparring session, that I let my frustrations get the best of me.

I was sparring against Master Cho's pride and joy, Simon, the one _he_ always bragged about. In a way, it was completely the opposite of my debate team experience, this time I was the one constantly being berated for not performing well enough. During this particular sparring experience, I finally had enough of the constant criticism. After failing to score any points during two rounds, I decided I had nothing to lose in the third.

When it came to physical size, at least this time I was matched with an equal. Simon was my height, as well as also being lean and lanky. With his GQ styled auburn hair and riveting green eyes, it was difficult to see him as an enemy. However, when it came to his conceited personality, it was easy to see why nobody liked him.

As soon as Simon stalked towards me, I concentrated on the many times I overheard him making jokes at my expense. When he was within striking distance, I jumped down and spun with a leg sweep, which was something I was extraordinarily good at. I agilely leapt to my feet and as he scrambled back to his, immediately I stepped forward, launching a series of rapid punches to his chest, using my Buddha's palm technique. As he staggered backwards, I quickly jumped into the air and landed with a spinning Lohan kick. Simon crashed to the ground, effectively ending our match, and my participation with the taekwondo school.

"I warned you not to combine any other techniques with that which I have been teaching you," Master Cho yelled angrily.

"Yes you did, however, I believe I have demonstrated that I can successfully create my own technique," I retorted in defiance.

"I'll show you how good you are," he said as he lunged towards me, using his typical cookie-cutter technique.

Without thought, I instinctively crouched and punched forward with both hands, using dual Buddha palms. The double-blow crashed squarely into his chest, sending him reeling backwards and gasping for air.

"Get out!" he yelled, still gasping, "and don't come back!"

I casually walked to the locker room, grabbed my things, and proceeded toward the door; I offered Simon a smirk of redemption as I exited the building.

Shortly thereafter, I also managed a measure of revenge against Brent. It happened one day while walking to class, I purposely ran into him accidentally, causing his books to go flying from his hand.

"Watch where you going idiot, unless you want to end up like before," he yelled, his face glowing bright red.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't see you there. Perhaps if you'd like, we can debate about it," I said wryly. I knew this would upset him, as the team had recently lost their final match; ironically, they had lost every match since he was renamed captain.

"Smartass, I'll show you about debating," he said as he grabbed my shirt collar and slammed me against the lockers. It was almost déjà vu, except this time there was a twist. As his fist flew toward my face, I shifted my weight and spun slightly; his hand smacked solidly against the metal lockers, creating a huge dent. He stepped backwards howling in pain as he clutched his now completely shattered right hand.

"Thanks for the debate," I said as I casually stepped around him. "If you'd like to talk again, we can, anytime, anywhere." I glanced over at his friends who were all standing there completely shocked and silent; I smiled the most arrogant smile I could muster as I walked away.

I had a newfound sense of accomplishment, even if it had come in an unorthodox manner. I wasn't surprised though, at an early age, I was already feeling that I was meant for much more than a simple human existence, that my true self was locked deep within my human form. Additionally, I had never been drawn to traditional religions; I just never felt that any of them ever clicked with me. I found some connection with Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, and Wicca, although eventually, I discovered my own spiritual path. I was able to develop a heightened understanding of the universe over the years, and frequently used meditation to help me escape the mundane feeling of human life. It was during some of these periods of intense meditation that I had developed my martial arts technique. However, it was also after my physical altercations, that these sessions became more profound and took on a more spiritual significance. I didn't realize at that time how soon I would come to depend on these skills.

It happened the night of my eighteenth birthday; I arrived home from school as usual, but to my surprise, my parents were not there. I remember wondering if maybe, they were secretly planning some big surprise party for me; that was when the phone rang. It was the police, calling to notify me that my parents had been involved in a bad car accident, and had been taken to the hospital.

When I arrived there, I was escorted to a small office where a doctor soon joined me. It was then that he told me that neither of my parents survived. I felt myself shatter into millions of jagged pieces, although apparently numbness had blocked the pain from reaching me. The next few days were nothing but a blur, I was thankful that a friend of the family had experience in handling funeral and beneficiary details. Thanks to her, I could spend the majority of those days locked away inside my head, thankful that the numbness was still protecting me.

Unfortunately, it didn't take long for the numbness to wash away and the millions of tiny pieces began to throb in pain. It took every ounce of courage I had to make it through the rest of the school year, every day felt like a repetitious battle within myself. At night, it was the meditation that allowed me to escape the pain. From the time I got home until I went to bed, I sat quietly in detached solitude. Through meditation, I could shield myself from the physical and emotional pain, allowing me to numbly think about my life and my future.

It was six months later, the beginning of December, that I awoke feeling compelled to leave. It felt as if someone had suddenly grabbed the thread of my life, and was pulling it away from the only place I ever knew. I didn't know why, I didn't know where, but I knew I was leaving. I began throwing as many clothes as I could fit into the cab of my truck, not bothering to take anything else. Even the computer that I was so addicted to, found itself abandoned with the rest of my bulky belongings. I quickly jotted a note to whomever might come looking for me, that I could be reached on my cellphone. Fortunately, my parents had left me with some money, so financially I wasn't hurting. The house itself had become mine as well; it was something I would worry about later. I couldn't be bothered with details, not when the thread felt like it had become so tight it could snap if I hesitated.

I had no idea where I was going; all I knew is that I was on the road, and driving west. I had an uncle in Montana; I wondered if that was where I was being drawn, although I couldn't figure out why. My uncle and I had never been close, so going to see him now wouldn't make much sense. Several hours later, after seeing the "Welcome to Washington" sign, I felt relieved. I had stopped only once, at a cheap motel, but the tightening thread wouldn't allow me to sleep for long.

My hope that the journey would end came with the sight of every large city, only to have it dashed with its rapid passing. I was beginning to think that my drive would never end, although if not soon, I knew I would end up reaching the Pacific Ocean.

I eventually passed through Olympia, which turned out to be the last city I would be seeing for quite some time. Highway 101 seemed endless, although from the map I knew that I would be running out of road soon, since I was now heading into a peninsula. Eventually I passed through Port Angeles, not bothering to glance because I could feel I wasn't stopping. I was shocked when I turned off the highway, at a small town called Forks. My shock soon turned to confusion, which abruptly became horror the moment I automatically turned onto a side street and abruptly stopped in front of a small two-story house, which was nestled against a heavily wooded area. Without thought, my hand turned off the ignition, announcing that my journey had reached its conclusion.

I sat in the truck for the longest time, just trying to make sense of everything. The name on the mailbox, Swan, didn't register with anything in my brain. The fact that there was a police car in the driveway, although unnerving, also didn't mean anything. Why was I drawn here of all places; it just didn't make sense. Then again, the entire "wake-up, throw your clothes into the truck, and drive more than 1,900 miles to an unknown destination" didn't make sense. Yet, here I was, having followed the pulling thread all the way across the country, just to have it suddenly stop the moment I reached this house. I finally gave a huge sigh, then opened the truck door and climbed out.

I was immediately pelted with cold, drizzly rain; I began to grumble. I had just left the gloom of snow behind, only to have it replaced with the gloom of rain, nice. Why couldn't I have been pulled to Florida? I sighed again, still not moving, continuing to get completely drenched. I stood in the rain for several more minutes, trying to get enough nerve to walk to the front door, and trying to figure out what to say when I did.

Finally, I pushed myself forward, forcing myself to put one foot in front of the other, and slowly I made my way up the sidewalk and onto the porch. With one last heavy sigh that expressed my consternation, I reached up and rapped three times on the door.


	4. Chapter 4

8

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 2**

_Need to Know_

I heard some movement from inside, and suddenly the door opened. Standing in the doorway was a tall, gangly, dark-haired Native American young man with intense golden-brown eyes; he was probably about fifteen or sixteen. Immediately I wanted to turn around and bolt for the truck, I'm sure the sudden embarrassment was obvious, although if it were, he didn't seem to notice.

"Can I help you?" the young man asked.

"Um, I'm not sure, I hope someone can help me," I said.

His eyes furrowed. "What do you need help with?"

I sighed in response, trying to decide how to explain. "I honestly wish I wasn't about to sound completely mental, but I really don't know exactly _why_ I'm here."

"Are you lost?"

"Well, yes and no. Yes, technically I don't know where I am or why I'm here, and no, because I drove to the exact place I was trying to go." I could tell I was coming across as a nut case, because his body language suggested he was about to slam the door in my face.

"Ok, you're sounding as confused as I am, maybe you should give me more details," he said.

I laughed and cracked a smile, which caused him to smile, which immediately sent a flood of warmth through my body.

"To make a long story short, I woke yesterday morning feeling compelled to throw all my clothes in my truck and drive. It wasn't that I was just driving, it felt like I was being pulled, I had no idea where. Then the pulling stopped the moment I reached this house, but I have no idea why I was drawn here." When his eyes seemed to become unfocused for a moment, I added, "I know that I am sounding like a mental patient, but honestly, I am quite sane."

Then the young man smiled a smile that made me think he understood more than I had told him.

"Honestly, that does sound strange, but it's not like this place hasn't seen its share of strangeness" he said with a laugh.

Just then, another man appeared from behind the door. I immediately gauged from his rigid stance that this was the one the police car belonged to. He stood about my height, with a medium build, short, slightly curly hair; he was probably in his forties. It was also fairly obvious that this was not the young man's father, as they looked nothing alike.

"Who is it Seth?" the man asked.

"I'm really not sure Charlie, possibly a need to know situation, or maybe just an escaped mental patient," Seth said with a chuckle, then gave me sly wink when he caught my exasperated gasp.

The man took a couple of steps backward, recomposed himself, then stepped forward again.

"Is there something I can do for you? I am the police chief of Forks," Charlie said in a commanding voice, sounding like he was imposing his authority upon the situation.

"Maybe _he_ can explain it better than I can; he seemed to understand more about why I'm here than I do," I said, nodding toward Seth.

Charlie raised an eyebrow and looked at Seth.

"Hey now, don't look at me. I have no idea, it's just that strange things don't shock me anymore, so what he said doesn't surprise me, that's all," Seth said, adding a shrug.

Begrudgingly, I repeated the entire story to Charlie, all the while expecting him to call an ambulance and have me hauled away to the nearest psych ward. After I had finished, he stepped away saying that he would be right back. I figured his return would involve handcuffs, but at least Seth was still standing there, which kept me both distracted and amused.

Charlie returned after just a couple of minutes; fortunately, there weren't any handcuffs in his hands. He was, however, accompanied by a woman with severely cropped hair, and very distinct Native American features; this woman definitely looked a lot more like Seth. She eyed me wearily; apparently, she was deciding whether I was a threat.

"Mom, it's cold out and he is soaked, I think we should invite him in and let him rest for a while at the very least," Seth pleaded.

She nodded, and Seth opened the door and ushered me in. As I passed, I noticed Charlie taking a quick peek toward my truck, probably planning to run my plates to see if I'm a wanted criminal or have a record.

Once inside, Seth eagerly introduced himself, along with introducing me to Charlie and his mother, Sue, who then began setting a place for me at the dinner table.

"Good thing Leah decided not to come for dinner," Seth said flashing a grin, "now there will be enough food for everyone else."

"Who is Leah?" I asked.

"My sister. Just be thankful it wasn't _her_ who answered the door," he snorted.

"Seth, that isn't nice," Sue said sternly.

As the food was passed around the table, Seth encouraged me to tell Sue my story. Reluctantly, I repeated my story for the third time. Sue sat motionless as she listened; even Charlie seemed intrigued hearing the story again.

"What about your parents? I'm sure they're worried about you," Sue said, after I had finished.

Her words brought back thoughts and emotions I had kept buried for months, the stabbing pain began to slice at the healing wounds.

After a brief pause, I replied, "My parents died in a car accident six months ago, the night of my eighteenth birthday."

"I'm so sorry," Sue said. "But don't you have any other family that might be worried about you?"

Her look of concern was appreciated, but it only made the wounds hurt worse.

"No. We never had a close family structure, I have aunts and uncles, but none of them would even recognize me if they saw me. I'm pretty much alone in the world."

"Man that sucks," Seth said. "To think I was just complaining about my sister."

"Don't worry about it; I'm ok... for the most part," I said.

Silence overcame the table for several minutes, thankfully the delicious food kept everyone distracted. That is, until Charlie spoke.

"What are your plans, now that you're here?" His voiced echoed his concern.

"Honestly, I don't know. I just knew that I needed to go where I was pulled; I didn't take time to think about the details. But now that I'm here, I haven't a clue what to do next." I paused, then exhaled. "I don't even have a place to stay, I don't know anyone, but fortunately I do have some money, so I'm not completely bereft."

Suddenly everyone was staring at me intently, like I was some sort of strange science project.

"Charlie, you have that empty room upstairs," Sue said, with a note of hesitation in her voice.

"Sue, I'm just not sure..." Charlie began saying, but I interrupted.

"It's ok, I'm a total stranger, I'm not sure I would even trust me considering the story I've told you." I tried to smile, but I was feeling deflated.

"I'd offer to let you stay at my house, but I don't think Leah... well, I just don't think she'd appreciate the company." She gave me an apologetic look. "It's just that my family is going through a lot right now, and I wouldn't want to bring you into the middle of that." She looked over at Seth, who looked hurt by the insinuation.

"C'mon Mom, if he doesn't have any other place, you have to let him stay with us. There has to be some reason that he is here, maybe Leah will imprint on him, maybe she is what drew him here."

The gasp that shot out of Sue's mouth was completely unexpected, and the look on her face was even worse, terrifying was more befitting.

"That's not funny Seth!" she barked. "Not another word about that, not another word!"

Abruptly she was up from the table and off into the other room in a flash. I looked over at Seth, who now appeared sullen. I then glanced over at Charlie, who was looking as dumbfounded as I felt.

"Uh, maybe I shouldn't ask, but exactly _what_ is imprinting?" I asked, looking to Charlie for answers.

"I really don't know, it's not one of the need to know things," Charlie replied, glancing over at Seth.

Considering Sue's reaction, I wasn't about to ask him, but he volunteered quietly, "It's what our people call 'love at first sight' except imagine it being a thousand times more powerful."

"I really doubt that is why I'm here Seth," I replied, grimacing at the thought.

"You're probably right. Anyway, please excuse me, I'll be right back, I'm going to check on mom," he said. As he walked away, he shot an anxious glance back at Charlie.

"Well, I guess I can't have you living out of your truck, besides, it's not like Bella is going to be coming home or anything," Charlie said, as he began removing the dishes from the table.

"Who is Bella?" I asked sheepishly, not sure I should even pose the question.

"She is my daughter. She just got married a couple of months ago, so her room isn't being used. Not sure how she'll react to me letting a complete stranger use it, but I guess she will just have to deal with it." He grinned at me, it was almost spiteful looking. I couldn't help wondering if there was more to the story, but I decided I would just thankful instead, at least now I wasn't going to have to sleep in my truck.

"Thank you Charlie, I appreciate that so much." In all my excitement, I had jumped to my feet, startling Charlie. "Don't worry, I'll pay you rent and everything, I'm certainly not a free-loader," I added fervently.

"Don't worry about it kid, I'm not worried about that. Just stay out of trouble, I don't need any more shocks in my life," he said, half-smiling, half-grimacing.

"Sure, no problem. Wow! This is so cool," I said.

"What's cool?" Seth said, as he reappeared in the kitchen, seeming more at ease now.

"Charlie said I can stay here!"

"That's great! Thanks Charlie, I'm sure mom will appreciate it too."

"No problem, just keep him out of trouble Seth."

His tone seemed to imply a double meaning, but Seth just grinned back at him. I knew I was missing something, a lot of something, but I was too excited to care.

Charlie then excused himself, and headed for the living room. Seth sat down at the table and we spent the next hour talking. It was easy to talk to Seth, not only did he seem to be a genuine caring guy, but he was also very pleasing to look at. However, I knew _he_ wasn't the reason I was there in Forks; that reason was still a nagging mystery.

During our conversation, I learned that Seth's father had died just a year earlier, so we knew each other's pain well. We also swapped stories about our lives growing up, but for some reason the details of his life shortly after his father's death became choppy and edited. It felt like there were things he wasn't sharing, and the things he did tell me, were full of hesitation and forethought. What made it harder on my already overburdened curiosity was that he was so exuberant that he would frequently begin to tell me something, then would abruptly stop, hesitate, then continue in a different direction. Many times I tried to get him to return to his original thought, but he would always look toward the living room, shake his head, and tell me it was nothing.

It was around 7pm when a sudden howl erupted, it seemed to be coming from just outside the house. Seth jumped up, looked at the clock, then said he had to go. I followed him to the living room, where Sue already had the door open, ready to leave. I looked at Charlie, who didn't seem the least bit surprised at their quick departure.

"What's with the sudden rush?" I asked.

"I didn't realize what time it is, I have, um, chores that I need to take care of," Seth replied sheepishly, adding, "I'm not sure when I'll be able to hang out with you again, but hopefully soon."

"Yes, I hope it's soon too, I don't know anyone else here."

"What am I, chopped liver?" Charlie said, looking annoyed.

"Anyone my own age," I corrected.

"I'll do my best," Seth said in a hurried tone.

"It was nice meeting you," Sue said, calling back over her shoulder.

"It was nice meeting both of you too," I yelled back.

When I turned around after closing the door, I saw that Charlie had turned the volume up on the TV; he seemed oddly comfortable with me wandering freely around his house. I wasn't into sports, so I could see immediately that I wouldn't be spending much time with Chief Swan.

I really wasn't in any mood to unpack my truck though; I was starting to feel the effects of all the driving. I decided to wander up and check out Bella's room. I climbed the stairs, trying not to think about everything that was rattling around in my head; I was not in any frame of mind to "think" at that moment. It didn't take long to find her old room; it was just down the hallway past the bathroom. The bedroom faced the front yard, which was now barely visible between the darkening sky and the gloomy drizzle. The room itself was decorated in feminine tones; light blue walls with yellowish-laced curtains. The only furniture that it contained was a small bed, rocking chair and table with an ancient looking computer sitting on it.

It would have to do, no sense getting upset about the décor, at least it was better than my truck. I sighed and flopped down on the bed, intending only to rest for a minute before going down to unload my truck.

When my eyes opened, it was completely dark in the room; Charlie must have turned the light out when he went to bed. It was too late, or early, whichever the case, to start unpacking. I was ok with that; I'd just close my eyes and sleep for a few more hours.

During that particular period of sleep, my usual serene dreams suddenly became filled with bizarre creatures that were standing around in a forest clearing, the scene looking strangely like a real-life chess match. Mysterious figures cloaked in black were on one side, their barely visible red eyes glaring angrily at their opponents. On the other side, were a group of people, at least they looked like normal people, except for their pale skin and unusual eye color. Some of them had red eyes as like their opponents, while others had more of an amber or topaz color.

However, they weren't the strangest sight in the clearing, for on each side of the pale-skinned people, were enormous snarling dogs. Not like regular dogs, more like giant wolves, they were immense, almost the size of horses. Then, without warning, both sides rushed toward one another, making contact almost instantly. Suddenly the sounds of growls, shrieks, snarls, and yelps filled the air. There were other strange sounds, almost like rocks hitting against rocks, but hundreds of times louder; pieces of pale body parts were flying through the air in every direction. Then suddenly one of the wolves, from out of nowhere, came crashing to the ground right at my feet. It was bleeding profusely from the nose and mouth; it had a huge gaping wound in its side. Then the gangly sandy colored wolf looked up at me, and a tear rolled down from its golden-brown eyes, golden-brown eyes that looked strangely familiar.

I sat straight up in bed and shook my head repeatedly, trying to clear the bizarre dream from my mind. I immediately thought of Seth, his golden-brown eyes, and cringed. What was going on with me? I never had dreams like that before, and why did that giant wolf remind me of Seth?

It was then I noticed that dim light was shining into the room. I was thankful, because now I could get up and not have to worry about going back to sleep; I wasn't about to risk experiencing that dream again.

I quietly made my way to the bathroom, but I could see that being quiet wasn't necessary, Charlie was already up; I could hear him banging around downstairs. I knew I wouldn't be able to shower until I brought my clothes in, but I still managed to clean my face and wet my hair to tame it.

When I met Charlie, he was just cleaning up his breakfast dishes.

"You'll have to fend for yourself around here, I'm not much of a cook, and I really don't know what you like anyway. So feel free to help yourself to whatever you can find in the kitchen."

"That's ok, I'm not into cooking either," I grinned.

"Well I have to go in to work for a bit today, if you need to leave, be sure to lock up. There is a hidden key out front, let me show you," he said, gesturing for me to follow.

After showing me the key, he jumped in the police cruiser and left. It was strange being left alone like that, I was a complete stranger after all, and I could be a thief. Then I snorted, realizing that stealing from a police chief wouldn't be the brightest thing for someone to do, I'm sure he thought of that too.

I then headed for the truck to unpack. I found myself wondering if I'd see Seth later, then shuttered, suddenly remembering the vision of the immense, sandy-colored wolf lying bloodied at my feet.


	5. Chapter 5

9

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 3**

_Legends_

While I was unpacking, I heard a knock down at the front door. I wasn't sure if I should answer it, but curiosity got the best of me. I opened the door, and there stood Seth.

"Hey Seth," I said excitedly, then I realized how he was dressed; he was wearing a pair of old torn sweat pants, a weathered T-shirt and old tennis shoes. "Where is your coat? It's freezing out, and you are completely soaked too, now you're gonna get sick," I added as I quickly ushered him inside.

"Don't worry about it, I'm healthy as a horse, besides, if you lived here all year this weather wouldn't bother you." He smiled at me, probably wondering if I was going to bark at him again.

"How did you get here? Did your mom drop you off?"

"No, I ran here," he said in a calm matter-of-fact tone.

My eyes furrowed. "What do you mean you ran here? Didn't you tell me last night that La Push was fifteen miles from here?"

"Yeah, but I'm very fast," he laughed. "Don't worry about it Brady, it's no big deal, honest." He said my name with an emphasized tone, as if to tell me I was acting like a parent.

I just shook my head and smiled, with every other crazy thing going on around me, why should it be a surprise that he ran fifteen miles just to see me.

"Fine, it's your health. Don't blame me if you end up in the hospital with pneumonia."

He laughed. "As I said, don't worry about it, I am used to running long distances."

"For school?" I said in an inquisitive tone, not expecting this to be the reason, but wanting him to explain.

"No, just to get around, you know. Since I don't have a car, it's either stay in boring La Push or use your feet to get around."

"Well, you have more energy than I do, I'd probably just sit around in boring La Push and wait until I turned sixteen so I could drive." We both chuckled.

Seth followed me upstairs and sat on the bed while I continued to unpack and put away my clothes.

"So what is it with you and wolves?" I asked abruptly.

His mouth fell open and he appeared to turn about four shades of white. He just stared at me for several minutes, before composing himself.

"What do you mean?" was all he managed to spit out.

"Yesterday when that wolf howled, you immediately jumped up as if you had just been called or something, then you and your mom were out the door with barely a word. It seemed strange at the time, but then last night I had this bizarre dream about a battle involving these weird pale creatures with red eyes and some enormous wolves. Honestly, I think that you were one of those wolves, and, well, the dream didn't end very well." I couldn't believe I was saying this to him, if he hadn't thought I was mental before, he certainly would now.

He just looked at me, like he was either puzzled or concerned; his lips were locked tightly as if he were trying to keep himself from speaking.

Finally, his silence ended. "Actually, when the wolf howled, I turned my head in that direction and saw what time it was. I have responsibilities with the tribe, and evidently mom realized what time it was too, so everything was just a coincidence." He gave me a quick sheepish look, but then quickly turned his gaze toward the floor. He was obviously hoping I would accept his explanation; I didn't.

"I have learned that there is no such thing as a coincidence Seth, but if you're not going to tell me, then I won't badger you about it. I'm sure you have your reasons; everything in my life lately has felt so surreal, as if I have become entangled in some great secret or something. The frustrating thing is, I'm never going to figure out why I'm here and what I'm supposed to do, if I can't break the secrecy." My voice oozed with exasperation.

Surprisingly, he didn't dissuade my assumption about him keeping secrets; he just smiled at me wryly, then laid back onto the bed. I turned my attention back to the closet, continuing to pull clothes from the garbage bags that I had stuffed them into.

"So tell me more about the dream you had, you said it didn't end well. I'm also curious why you thought I was one of those giant wolves?" His tone was curious, but also reserved.

I wondered if maybe he was afraid that by asking, he was opening a can of worms. The fact that he hadn't argued with me about what I had said earlier, told me that there was definitely a can to open.

"Fine, if you really want to hear it." I turned around to face him once more, and suddenly a flash of heat flooded my body. There he lay, on my bed, with his T-shirt hiked up to his chest, rubbing his beautifully sculptured stomach casually. His golden eyes were gazing softly out the window; he was obviously unaware of what he was doing, or at least, unaware of how it would affect me. The sight of his tawny smooth skin, contrasting with the white T-shirt, sent flames down my body. I quickly turned away before he could see my reaction; I tried to bury my face into the closet to avoid detection.

"If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to," he mused. "I'm just curious that's all."

"No, I'll tell you, it's just that I am trying to figure out a way to explain it without sounding weird," I lied.

"Weird, now that would be something new for you," he snorted.

When I turned back around, I was relieved to see that his shirt was pulled back down, now maybe I could actually concentrate. I leaned against the wall next to the bed, and began telling him about my dream, although I edited the part out about the wolf shedding tears, I just didn't think that was crucial.

After I explained everything, his questions began to spill forth, his face now showing a look of concern.

"In this dream, were you human or a vam, er, or something else?"

"Was I a human or a what?" I asked, not missing his slip.

"Don't change the subject, just answer the question," he chided.

"Fine," I said. "I don't know what I was; I don't know whether anyone else even knew I was there. Maybe I was a ghost, who knows."

Seth sighed, shook his head and then relaxed back on the bed and closed his eyes. Earlier when I was telling him my dream, I noticed that his facial expressions shifted several times, between curiosity and concern. I could tell there was something going on in his head, but I knew he wouldn't explain. Although, his slip about whether I were human or a vam-something still jostled in my head; he couldn't have meant vampire, because it was daylight and I didn't see any fangs. What else could he have meant that sounded like the word 'vampire' though? Ugh, more mystery, that's all I needed.

When a soft snore suddenly came from the direction of my bed, I begrudgingly returned to unpacking, Seth was obviously exhausted. I hadn't had the nerve to tell him, but he really looked rough, like he hadn't gotten any sleep that night. I couldn't help staring at him from time to time, taking in his dark angelic appearance, as it laid spread across my bed. I smiled, suddenly very thankful that nobody could read my thoughts.

A short while later, Charlie arrived home. I crept downstairs and told him that Seth had stopped over, and had fallen asleep while watching me unpack.

Charlie laughed. "That's what happens when you stay out all night, I keep telling Sue that the kid is going to get sick because of it."

"What do you mean that he stays out all night, all night doing what?" I asked sharply.

"Uh, well, I don't know the details, but I just know that he is up every night." Charlie turned away from me, clicking on the TV.

Great, more mystery, as if I hadn't been getting enough of that from Seth, now Charlie too. There was definitely something going on, and they all seemed determined to keep me out of it.

I returned to my bedroom and grabbed some clothes, then headed for the bathroom; maybe a nice long shower would help my mind unravel some of the mysteries.

After I was done in the bathroom, I opened the door to return to my room, but stress-filled voices coming from downstairs stopped me cold.

"I'm not going to tell Bella not to bring Nessie over, I barely get a chance to see her as it is," Charlie said, clearly annoyed.

"How will you explain her to Brady, what if she does something unusual, what will you tell him?" Sue asked.

"Honestly Sue, do you really think anything would bother that kid? Considering the entire situation of how he got here, I don't think we have anything to worry about with him." Charlie's voice was calmer, but still flustered.

"I really don't know what to make of Brady, but Seth seems to like him. Seth thinks that he is supposed to be here for some reason, but I'm not so sure. In any case, I'm not ready to parade everything out in front of him, and of course, Seth can't tell him anything himself. Jacob gave him an order that he is not to share any of our family secrets with him." I heard a chair squeak as it was being pulled out, then someone sat heavily down into it.

"Why is Jacob so concerned over Nessie anyway? Shouldn't Bella and Edward be the ones who are concerned?"

"Speaking of Bella, what did she have to say about your new houseguest?"

Charlie hesitated. "At first she seemed very concerned, but then became irritated with me because I am letting him stay in _her_ room." Charlie laughed, and then added, "I told her that I didn't think there was anything to worry about, he seems like a nice enough young man."

"Nice or not, we can't have the entire world knowing about everything."

"Oh Sue, I think you worry too much. Bella seemed to calm down after we talked a bit more, but then she called back after Jacob talked to her, and she was agitated again. Apparently, Jacob had talked to Seth, but didn't seem to agree with him that Brady wasn't a threat to Nessie; I just don't get what Jacob has to do with this."

"He's under a lot of stress Charlie, all of us are. With what is coming…"

"Need to know, Sue, need to know!" Charlie snapped.

"Right. Well, everyone is under a lot of stress; we'll leave it at that," she added dryly.

Just then, I heard Seth's snoring stop, so I quickly made my way to the bedroom before he caught me eavesdropping.

"Hey sleepy-head," I said, tossing my damp towel in his face.

"Nice, thanks," he laughed, then stretched. "Why did you let me sleep so long? That was very rude thing for me to do, fall asleep in the middle of a conversation."

"Don't be dumb, I could tell you were tired so I let you sleep, no big deal. Besides, Charlie told me about you running around all night." I picked my words well, trying to get a reaction, and it worked.

Seth stiffened, his eyebrows suddenly furrowing, his eyes now stared at me incredulously. "What _exactly_ did he tell you I was doing?"

"Just running around, howling at the moon." I laughed.

"W_hat_ did he tell you?" Seth said angrily, slinking toward me, glaring now, his hands beginning to tremble.

"Geez Seth, take it easy, he didn't tell me your s_ecret_ if that's what you're paranoid about. He just said that you have responsibilities with the tribe, that's all."

Seth relaxed back, but his hands still had a slight tremble. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. That was stupid of me; I guess you probably want me to leave now," Seth said, not looking at me, his voice somber.

"Why would you think that? I can understand your worry, even if I don't know what it is about."

"Thank you," he said. Then looking up at me with concerned eyes, "I really want to tell you, believe me I do, but I can't. You already know that _something_ is going on, so I'm not going to try to give you false explanations anymore. If you figure it out on your own, which you seem like you're close to doing anyway, then I won't have to be such a jerk anymore." He laughed, and then added, "Keep in mind, what you learn may not be what you want to know."

I shrugged. "Maybe, but I doubt it. I don't like being in the dark, especially when I have such a strong feeling that I'm meant to be a part of this."

"I honestly believe that is true too, however, I just can't figure out what part you would fit into. Honesty, it scares me to think about you getting any deeper into this, there are so many dangers, you just don't know."

Seth looked glum, like he wanted to wrap his arms around me to protect me. As much as that idea appealed to me, it wasn't protection that I was seeking; it was answers.

"Seth, are you awake?" Sue's voice called from downstairs. "It's time to go."

"Ok, I'll be right down." Seth sighed, sprung lightly to his feet, and stretched once more. Looking at me, he said, "I really hope your dream doesn't come true, that would suck." Then he flashed a sly smile and bounded off down the stairs.

I sat down on my bed, shaking my head; that boy was certainly confusing. Apparently, I was on the verge of discovering the truth, but I still didn't think I had a clue. There were a lot of pieces that I felt could see, although, I still wasn't convinced that what I was thinking was the truth, it all seemed too far-fetched to me. I was expecting some sort of new spiritual insight, not finding myself delving into a world of real-life monsters.

Something definitely had to do with wolves though, and it involved Seth, that was pretty much all I knew. Then I glanced over at the ancient computer; I was now regretting leaving my own computer behind. I wasn't even sure if the ancient thing would work, but it was worth a try at least. I turned it on, and miraculously it started to wheeze, it wasn't a good sound, but at least it was doing something.

I must have sat there for ten minutes until it finally finished loading; the wait was driving me insane. If the thing didn't work, I would have to go buy a new laptop, or maybe the library had a computer I could use.

Suddenly I realized that I wasn't even sure they had an internet connection, even though I noticed a phone cord running into the back of it. I searched the desktop and found what I was looking for, an icon for an internet service provider. I double-clicked, and the impatient wait began again, this time waiting to see if it was actually going to connect. Shortly after the distinct modem sound, I was bombarded with a ton of pop-ups that I had to close. I guess I should have just been thankful Charlie had a computer, but I was too irritated at that moment to be thankful.

When the web browser finally loaded, I typed in "Quileute wolves" and hit enter. Then came another long wait, the wait for the search listings to load. I scrolled through the descriptions, and found a couple that sounded promising. I clicked one, and then came the _really_ long wait, but it turned out to be nothing remotely like what I was looking for. Then, the next site loaded, and as I started reading, I realized it was what I had been hoping to find. The website told about the myths of the Quileute tribe, about their ancestors that could supposedly change from man to wolf. I felt a cold chill run down my spine, and tears form as I suddenly remembered my dream. Charlie's words about Seth running around all night, Sue's comment about 'family secret', and her ominous statement about "with what is coming." I shuttered.

I returned to reading, only to realize that what I had been thinking was not completely true. Apparently, the Quileute's were not like true werewolves, they didn't change because of the full moon, nor were they able to transform others by biting them. In fact, there was no way to become one of them; you had to have the ability genetically born into you, from father to son. The legend mentioned that the Quileute's had the ability to transform at will; they were completely in control of their own transformation, unlike the mythological werewolves who were at the mercy of the full moon.

As I continued reading, the Quileute legend began mentioning the evil "cold ones": the blood-drinkers. More chills ran down my spine, I suddenly recalled what Seth had said earlier in response to my dream, "In this dream, were you human or a vam, er, or something else?" He DID mean vampire, that was clear now. So Seth really _was_ able to change into a wolf, but what else, where did the vampires fit into all of this. The website didn't say much about the 'cold ones', other than they were enemies of the Quileute's.

I did a search on vampires, but when I saw the list of sites I'd have to visit, I decided it was better to try to figure it out on my own.

I went over and collapsed down onto the bed, allowing all of the puzzling thoughts time to fit together. I thought back to my dream, and clearly, it was daylight in my dream, yet the vampires weren't bothered by it. I was also confused because I could clearly understand how the cloaked figures could be vampires, just because of their appearance. However, the group that the wolves had sided with, as I recalled now, also didn't appear exactly human. Several of them had red eyes, like the cloaked vampires, while others had a strange golden color. They all had pale skin, yet there was nothing overly threatening from their appearance. Well, other than the red-eyed ones, their eyes alone made them appear frightening. In fact, as I slowly went over the dream again, I realized that they all looked quite beautiful. During my dream I had walked in between them, I had seen both sides quite clearly before the battle began, so I remembered how each side looked. The women were all very beautiful and graceful, looking like supermodels out for a photo shoot. The men were also very attractive, all quite boyish looking, with perfect features. It was only their red eyes that distracted from their beauty, because it was so distinctly nonhuman. The golden-eyed ones were the exception to this, however, as their eyes gave them an even greater sense of beauty. Yet, it was only a small group of them that had these stunning golden eyes, and all of them were on the side of the wolves. Were there different types of vampires? What made some have golden eyes, while others had red? I was still very confused, although, I didn't believe I would find the answers to these questions on the internet.

It was then that I heard Charlie banging around downstairs again, obviously making dinner. Then my stomach growled, reluctantly I got up and headed to the kitchen, not sure what to expect from Charlie, considering his earlier tense conversation with Sue.


	6. Chapter 6

10

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 4**

_A Child's Vision_

I don't know why I was so nervous; I was sitting there on the couch next to Seth, which should have been comforting in itself. Although, Charlie also seemed nervous, he kept pacing from the front door to the kitchen and back. The night before, Charlie had explained to me that Bella was bringing his granddaughter over the next day, and that his granddaughter was very special.

"All grandfathers think their granddaughters are special," I told him.

He laughed, then said, "When I say special, I'm talking unusually special. It's because of how special she is, that Bella is hesitant about bringing her over," he said with a sigh.

"It's because of me isn't it, because she is afraid of how I might react."

"Yes exactly. Bella's new family is very, er, different. They need to maintain their privacy, so she is afraid of..." He stammered, unable to find the right words.

"She doesn't want people to know the truth, that's understandable. She doesn't want to open her family up to gossip mongers or people that can't keep their mouths shut," I said as I got up from the table, taking my plate to the sink.

"I thought you would understand, and that is why Bella has agreed to bring Nessie over tomorrow, because she believed me when I told her that I felt you could keep a secret." His words were spoken with the tone of authority, he was more or less telling me to keep my mouth shut.

"No worries Charlie, I can keep a secret, not like I have anyone to tell besides Seth anyway, and it isn't like he doesn't have his own secrets to protect," I snorted.

I turned to see Charlie staring at me with his mouth open. "No, I haven't exactly put all the pieces together yet, but I'm close. I will say this whole situation isn't exactly what I had expected to find when I arrived here, but it doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Actually, the more I learn, the more intrigued I am."

"That makes one of us," he groaned. "I really don't care to know the details, so whatever you figure out, keep it to yourself. If it isn't something that I need to know, then I prefer not to know."

"I understand, but I could never be that way, I'm way too curious a person."

"Just remember what curiosity did to the cat," he replied sarcastically.

"Yeah, that's true, but cats also have nine lives, and I'm still on my first; or at least I think I am."

"Ugh, I don't want to talk about this stuff anymore." Charlie quickly got up and disappeared into the living room, clearly ruffled by our conversation. I just smiled, knowing that tomorrow I would have more pieces to the puzzle.

The next morning, shortly before Bella arrived, Seth showed up. He said that he was in the neighborhood and thought he'd stop by, but I assumed this had more to do with Bella and Nessie, than it did with just stopping to see me.

"So who is Jacob?" I asked, as Seth took a seat on the couch. Charlie gave him a strange look and then abruptly headed for the kitchen. I looked at Seth in confusion, but he merely glanced toward the TV.

"I heard your mom telling Charlie last night that he had given you an order not to reveal any secrets, and I also overheard that he is somehow involved with Bella's family; I'm just trying to make sense of it all."

"If you know he gave me an order not to say anything, then why are you asking me?" he said in exasperation.

I walked over and sat next to him, not wanting Charlie to overhear. "I did an internet search last night and discovered information about the old Quileute legends." Seth cringed.

"And what did you discover?" he asked, trying not to seem shocked.

"Well, it made me curious, do you carry your clothes around in your mouth when you're in wolf form, or do you stash them somewhere?" I smiled broadly, as I looked deep into his eyes for confirmation.

Seth snorted, then made another sound that seemed like a muffled howl. Suddenly there was a loud bang from the kitchen; Charlie must have dropped something.

"I knew you'd figure it out, but I didn't expect you to react so, so casually about it." Seth's smile was huge now, both excited and relaxed.

"Honestly, nothing surprises me anymore. I guess any normal person would be freaked out, still grasping at their former reality for comfort," I laughed, "but that common human reality has never really existed for me anyway, my sense of reality has always been a bit twisted." He laughed in agreement.

"So how did your parents react to all of this, or had they known about it all along?" I asked.

Seth's face then changed to one of pain, as if I had just stabbed him with a knife.

"Nobody can ever be prepared for this; it's not like anyone even knows _who_ it is going to happen to. One minute you're completely normal, and the next, you burst into something else. It took everyone by surprise, especially when it happened to my sister Leah; there had never been a female that transformed before." Seth leaned forward, burying his face into his hands.

"I'm sorry Seth; if this bothers you to talk about you don't have to..."

"No, it's ok. It's just that, when this happened to Leah and me, it completely shocked my mom and dad. The problem was, my dad already had a bad heart, and it seems our transformation was what caused his fatal heart attack."

Without thinking about it, I reached over and put my hand on Seth's back. When I realized what I had done, I was suddenly afraid of how he would react, but it was too late to change my mind. However, Seth's posture remained the same, not seeming the least bit shocked or repelled by my actions. I immediately noticed the intensity of his body heat, but knew that it wasn't the proper time to ask about it.

"Leah and I both feel that it was because of us, that our dad died. If we hadn't turned into monsters, then he would still be alive and mom wouldn't have had to endure all that pain."

"Seth, it's not _your_ fault. I have always believed that things in life happen for a reason, even if we don't always understand the reason at the time. Somehow all of this was meant to be, so you can't blame yourself for something that was completely out of your control."

"Even so, Leah has taken all of this much harder than I have. Not like she didn't have enough turmoil to deal with, having lost Sam to Emily, but then this happened. Ever since then, she has vowed to protect mom and me, making it her personal responsibility for our safety." Seth sighed.

Suddenly Charlie appeared back in the living room again, he was continuing his pacing. Seth immediately became quiet, and I suddenly became nervous as my mind shifted back to the present. I was completely comfortable with Seth, but I knew nothing about Bella or her special child, I didn't know what to expect.

When I saw Charlie stiffen as he looked out the window, I knew that Bella had arrived. Charlie quickly opened the door and stepped out to greet her, I could hear Bella's voice, it sounded unusual, almost as if it had a strange chime to it.

Charlie walked back into the house carrying a small child, followed by Bella and another person, an extremely tall and broad man with long black hair and russet skin. From his features, I realized at once that this must be Jacob, another shot of nervousness flooded through me.

When my gaze returned to Bella, I became frozen. I knew her, not directly, but through my dream. I remembered her face; although her eyes now were not the same burgundy shade they had been in the dream. Now her eyes were a strange muddy color brown, not a color I had ever seen before, and it would be obvious to anyone that it was not a natural color.

I reluctantly rose to my feet, reluctantly because I caught a chilling look from Jacob as he moved further into the room. Seth was instantly at my side, which made me feel a tad more relaxed.

When Charlie introduced me, I immediately stretched out my hand in greeting. Bella seemed to hesitate slightly, but then reached out for my hand. It felt like cold, hard ice, I immediately thought that this is how shaking hands with an ice sculpture would feel. I forced myself not to react to the feel; I half expected it, although not quite to this extreme. Her eyes seemed to react, ever so slightly, to my lack of reaction to her skin, and then she released my hand.

Charlie then introduced me to Jacob, who acted like he didn't see my outstretched hand, in fact he wasn't even looking at me, he was acting like I wasn't there.

"Jake, don't be rude," Seth said quietly, "he's my friend."

Jacob sighed and finally looked down at me, his dark eyes showing no emotion. He reached out and grabbed my hand in an uninterested manner, putting a bit too much effort into it though. I could feel the warning that his grip contained, I jerked my hand back protectively. It wasn't just because of his vice-like grip, but also because it felt like his touch had burned me. Jacob just grunted, probably amused at my reaction. I looked over at Seth who was shaking his head, _he_ wasn't amused.

Then Charlie turned and began to walking toward the kitchen.

"Hey Charlie, you forgot to introduce me to your granddaughter," I said. Suddenly I felt a huge, hot body move to within inches of my back. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Seth move toward me too, as if to intervene.

"Oh sorry," Charlie said, turning around to present the inquisitive child he was holding. "This is Nessie, er, Renesmee."

I had grown accustomed to people stammering over something I wasn't supposed to know, so I wasn't surprised when it happened this time.

"Hello Renesmee," I said, moving closer to the child. She was absolutely adorable, angelic in appearance, with dark chocolate eyes and unique, almost translucent skin. Suddenly I felt a bit claustrophobic as Bella moved in closer on my left side, while Jacob moved menacingly to my right, followed by Seth facing Jacob.

Renesmee just smiled at me, cocking her head to one side in an inquisitive manner, and then she giggled. Suddenly Charlie spun around and headed off to the kitchen, Jacob almost knocked me over as he stormed past me, as Seth moved nimbly out of his path. Bella looked at me with an almost apologetic smile, and then followed after them.

I looked at Seth, who just shrugged. Seth headed back to the couch, and I followed.

"Charlie, I have to leave for a while, I have a few errands to run," I heard Bella say from the kitchen. "I'll be back a bit later."

I didn't see her pass back by me, I just saw the door open and close, and she was gone.

"Seth, give me your hand," I said, looking at him curiously.

"Why? What are you going to do?" he asked apprehensively.

"Just do it."

Reluctantly he held out his hand, and I slowly put my hand on his. I recoiled a bit; his skin was even hotter then it seemed earlier. I smiled at him, and Seth quickly pulled his hand back, eyeing me with suspicion.

"I think I understand who Jacob is now, and why you have to listen to him. He is your leader isn't he, kind of like the alpha in a wolf pack?"

Seth sat there, staring at me in shock. I was getting good at putting the pieces together, maybe too good.

"How?" Was all he could manage.

"Your skin is just as hot as his, going beyond any normal human body temperature. I realized as soon as I shook his hand, that he must also be a wolf. As far as the alpha thing, I've always been interested in wolves, so I know their hierarchy."

"Man, you never cease to amaze me, I'm just thankful that everyone isn't as smart as you," he chuckled.

"Thanks, I guess that means I must belong here huh?"

Suddenly, the sound of an irritated huff came from the kitchen, obviously Jacob was listening.

"Although, I don't see how you can put up with him. Alpha or not, he seems like just a big jerk. I don't see why he is so rude to me anyway, it's not like I'm going to tell anyone about anything."

"He isn't normally like that, he's just being protective," Seth defended.

I sighed. "If you say so, I still think he's just a jerk. How else should I feel, that is the only impression I have of him."

Then from the kitchen, I heard Jacob's voice, "No Nessie, you can't show him, it doesn't matter what he thinks of me. Remember what your mother told you."

I looked over at Seth, who was eyeing me warily. I smiled at him, and then quickly got up and made my way to the kitchen, Seth was instantly on my heels.

When Jacob saw me enter the kitchen, he appeared to snarl at me, and instantly moved toward Renesmee protectively.

"Jake," Seth groaned, but Jacob just glared at him.

"Can't I get a drink? Geez, it's not as if I'm some crazed vampire or anything."

Jacob's body suddenly shuttered, and his head whipped from me to Seth, back and forth. With Jacob momentarily unfocused, I took the opportunity to move past him to the sink, where I pretended to get a drink. Renesmee was sitting on the floor, her eyes moving from person to person, looking like she was concerned. When Jacob moved toward Seth, like he was going to berate him, I moved down to sit with Renesmee.

"Did you want to show me something, Nessie?" I asked, excitedly. "Don't worry; I won't tell anyone, I can keep a secret." She smiled at me, then reached out and put her hand on my forehead.

"No!" I heard Jacob yelp, but it was too late.

I shuttered briefly when the images appeared, but I remained steady. I saw visions of what must have been her memories, they moved from scene to scene, like a well-edited movie. They were all scenes of her and Jacob, and these images showed a completely different side of him. I realized at once that this is what she wanted to show me, the _real_ Jacob, not the menacing one I had met in the living room.

When I opened my eyes, Nessie had a look of sadness on her face, as if she had done something wrong. Jacob was on his hands and knees towering over me, like a rabid dog.

"Thank you," I said quietly, and smiled at her. "I see what you mean; I guess he's not such a jerk after all."

She smiled again, and I felt Jacob back off, rising back to his feet.

"What did she show you?" Seth asked.

"I can't tell you, it's a secret," I replied, winking at her. She giggled.

When I stood up, I turned around and faced Jacob. It was really intimidating to have someone towering over me, but I wasn't about to show fear. After all, animals tended to attack only those who showed fear or ran away. This thought made me smile.

"What?" Jacob barked, glaring at me.

"I can understand why you are so protective of her now, so I can't fault you for that." Then I turned around, and headed up to my bedroom, with Seth in tow.

"Did you have to make that comment about a crazed vampire; I think you just about caused Jake to have a stroke."

"Oh, because Charlie doesn't know that his daughter is one, I guess he wouldn't want to know that would he."

Seth gasped, shook his head, then flopped down on my bed. "I can't believe you figured that out too, and you didn't act the least bit afraid of her."

"Well, it was easy to figure out when I saw her, I recognized her from my dream." Seth immediately sat up and stared at me intently. "Then when I touched her hand, the phrase "cold ones" came to mind, and everything just clicked."

"Are you sure it was _her_ in your dream?"

"Positive. There is no doubt in my mind that it was her, it just makes me wonder about the others."

Seth frowned, then reclined back on the bed.

"What's on your mind Seth?" I moved to the bed, taking a seat beside him.

"Nothing, don't worry about it."

I sighed, realizing what must be going through his head. Thus far my dream was running true to life, if it continued that way, Seth and I both knew how it would end.

"Seth, this doesn't mean that my dream is going to come true. In all the experiences I've had in which my dreams have come true, they were all dreams that I had forgotten. Never once did a dream I actually remembered come true, so don't worry about it."

He rolled his eyes but didn't say anything.

"What? What are you thinking Seth, tell me." I was getting agitated the more he refused to talk.

"Wasn't it you that told me that there is no such thing as a coincidence? Then if that is true, there is something very non-coincidental happening here. I just don't see how this can be taken any other way." His voice trailed off, his eyes turned away from me.

"Then why am I here?" I said angrily, "What do you think I'm here for?"

"Considering that in your dream, you never actually appeared to be there, it was more like a premonition. If that is the case, then I believe that you are here to let me know how—, well, how things will end for me. This gives me the chance to appreciate what little time I have left, and so I can tell everyone goodbye properly." I saw the tears forming in his eyes, but he quickly turned onto his side, completely hiding his face from me.

"That is NOT why I'm here Seth! Sorry, but I'm not here to be your 'ghost of Christmas present', there is much more for me here than that. The fact that I remembered this dream means that it _can_ be changed, and I believe that _that_ is the reason that I am here." I exhaled in a huff.

"What can you do? You're only a human, you can't fight them, you would only become their lunch. Sorry man, but it's true."

Yes, it _was_ true. Right this moment it was true anyway. I knew I had to figure out a way to change that somehow, some way. I knew there wasn't any time to lose; I just had to put a few more pieces of the puzzle together first. I had no idea 'how' Bella had joined the Cullens, and I wasn't referring to her marriage. I knew there wasn't any way that I could become like Seth and Jacob, but there was still another possibility, although that was something I knew very little about. I figured that if I asked Seth about that topic, he would realize where I was going, and do something to stop me. From this point forward, I had to be careful about what I said to Seth. I still didn't know what I was going to do, but I knew I needed to learn more about the Cullens.

"Well Mr. Pessimism, I'm going back downstairs and hang out with the gifted child for awhile. At least her thoughts aren't as bleak as yours," I said sarcastically.

"Be careful with that, Jake might decide to have you for lunch," he said with a laugh.

"No worries, I'm sure Nessie will protect me from her big bad wolf," I snorted. Then we both laughed and Seth returned to his feet to accompany me downstairs.

I spent the next few hours entertaining and being entertained by the amazing toddler. Of course, the time was spent as a group, and Jacob seemed to warm up a little as he saw how accepting I was of everything. Seth though, sat off to himself in a corner of the kitchen; I knew his mind was still obsessing over my dream and the potential implication.

When Bella returned late in the afternoon, her expression was that of pure torture. Something must have happened while she was gone, something that caused her to look that way. I also noticed Jacob's face change when he saw her as well, shifting from happiness to extreme concern; instantly he scooped up Nessie, and was heading for the door. Just like that, they were gone. Charlie, Seth and I looked at each other in confusion. Then Charlie just shrugged and plopped down in front of the TV. I swore I heard him mumble, "Need to know."

Seth left shortly afterward, probably trying to avoid the interrogation he saw in my eyes. I knew that whatever had upset Bella had something to do with everything that was going on. Maybe she learned that there was even less time than once thought; the idea made me shutter, seeing Seth's bloodied wolf body lying in front of me again. I knew I had to act, and act quickly, I just didn't know what action to take yet. However, I had confidence that soon, some opportunity would present itself.


	7. Chapter 7

9

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 5**

_Surprised Guests_

The opportunity I had been seeking came the very next day.

I had spent almost the entire day feeling as gloomy as the weather; dejected because Seth never came over. I figured that either he was avoiding me in order to evade my questions, or avoiding me to escape thinking about my dream, or maybe it was possible that Jacob had ordered him to stay away. I didn't think Jacob would do that, considering how he seemed to act toward me before he left.

Charlie arrived home later that afternoon, and Sue showed up shortly afterward. She brought food, it was nice to have something home cooked for a change; although, even food wasn't enough to distract me from the nagging question.

"What was Seth up to today, I thought maybe he'd stop over," I said dejectedly.

"He had some, uh, business to attend to today, over at the Cullens'," she said, her voice seemed concerned. "In fact, I am picking him up from there on the way home."

"You're picking him up?" Charlie snorted. "That's different."

"I don't want him wearing himself out; Jacob has him patrolling, day and night. Since he had to be there all day today, and I was going to be passing there anyway, I insisted that I pick him up. It's not much, but at least it's a little break for him." She sat down at the table, letting out a deep sigh.

"It doesn't help that he spends his off hours over here either, he should be using that time to sleep," Charlie added, looking over at me.

I glared back at him. "Hey now, don't blame me, he comes over here by his own choice. In fact, he crashed here the other day and I let him sleep."

"That's true. I just wish he'd stop trying to do so much," Charlie said.

"He's just like his father was, very stubborn, always worrying about everyone else but himself," Sue added thoughtfully.

After eating, I excused myself, using the explanation that I was going to go out for a drive around town. They both eyed me suspiciously, until I added, "It's just that I've been inside this house every day since I got here, I just really need to get out for a bit." That, they seemed to understand.

However, they were right with their initial suspicion; I had an ulterior motive for going out for a drive, and a definite place in mind. Unfortunately, I didn't know where the place was exactly, but Sue would soon lead the way.

I waited just down the block, hopefully far enough away that Sue wouldn't notice me tailing her. When she left Charlie's, I immediately began my pursuit. From the map I had seen of the area, I knew the general direction she would be headed, so I could hang back a bit to avoid detection. Once we were out on a more isolated part of the highway, I moved in a bit closer. Thankfully, the sun was setting, so everything was a bit dimmer, lessening the chances of being spotted even more. When I saw her brake lights, I slowed down to a crawl; taking in mental notes of the area. Then she abruptly stopped, leaving me no time to stop without being obvious. So instead, I kept slowly on the gas, hoping to pass by her without being noticed. As I passed, I noticed that she had stopped at the end of an almost hidden driveway; Seth was just walking out from the woods wearing only a pair of shorts. That sight alone nearly made me drive off the road, I couldn't help but stare; unfortunately, he looked directly at me as I passed. I quickly turned my attention back to the road and jumped on the gas. I turned off onto a dirt road a short distance away, quickly switching off my lights to avoid being seen. If Seth had recognized me, which I was sure he had, I wasn't sure who he'd tell or what he'd say. I don't know if he would figure out what my plan was, but if he did, I knew everyone would try to stop me.

When I was sure they had passed, I quickly turned around and headed back down the highway, looking for the hidden driveway. I was nearly past it when I saw it, and quickly hit my brakes, bringing the truck to a sliding stop. I sat there for the longest time, just staring, trying to make sure I could find this place again tomorrow. I might be a little insane, but I wasn't stupid. I certainly wasn't about to venture into unfamiliar territory in the dark, especially not where vampires were living. No, I would cross that bridge tomorrow, when I could at least see which direction death might be coming for me.

When I got back to Charlie's, I expected him to mention that Seth had called, but he didn't say a word. His attention was clearly into the game as usual, so I headed up to bed. I laid there in the dark, planning the next day's adventure. I knew that I would probably cause a ruckus, and I had no idea how it would turn out. Maybe tonight was the last night of my life; maybe tomorrow I would become vampire dinner. I tried not to think about that, instead I tried to focus on what I was going to say to them. No matter which way I played it out in my head, in every scenario I sounded like a lunatic. I sighed, and then rolled over to try and get some sleep. There was no way I could plan this, I was just going to have to wing it.

I woke up the next morning with my stomach in knots. Could I really go through with this? Suddenly my idea sounded insanely suicidal, but then the vision of Seth's wolf body lying at my feet snapped me out of the panic attack. I quickly showered and grabbed some food before heading out the door, for possibly the last time. I hoped that Seth wasn't at the Cullens' place today; I knew he would try to stop me if he was. Maybe he had forewarned Jacob; maybe they were both sitting there waiting for me now. Whatever the case, I wasn't going to back down, this felt too right, like this was what I was here for.

When I reached the hidden driveway, my stomach suddenly twisted again, but I didn't stop. I turned onto the road, and followed the seemingly endless tunnel of green until I arrived into an open clearing, which revealed an enormous white house. I came to a stop near the front door, but sat there for a few moments taking in the splendor. Then I caught a glimpse of some movement inside, and decided it was now or never.

I climbed out of my truck, and approached the front porch. As I got closer, the front door opened and a blond-haired man stepped out to greet me, his golden eyes met me with stunned curiosity; I recognized him at once, he had also been in my dream.

"Can I help you with something?" the man asked politely.

I took in a deep breath. "I certainly hope so, although what I'm about to say may seem quite strange." I smiled sheepishly at the man, hoping to win some favor.

"Ok, you have my attention," he replied.

"My name is Brady Dawn, I'm not sure if Bella or Jacob had mentioned me, but I'm the one staying over at Bella's dad's place."

"Is Charlie ok?" The man suddenly seemed concerned, taking a step toward me.

"Charlie is fine, he isn't the reason I'm here."

The man stopped, then stepped backwards, fluidly returning to his previous position. Suddenly the door opened, and another man stepped out, yet another one from my dream. This man was stunning in his physical beauty; his golden eyes seemed to pulse with intensity. For a second I was taken aback, my mind became unfocused and I felt dizzy, like I was going to hyperventilate.

"Carlisle, what is going on? Why is _he_ here?" he asked, obviously annoyed with my presence.

"I'm not exactly sure Edward; he was just explaining that to me." They were both looking at me again, obviously waiting for me to continue.

"You must be Bella's husband Edward," I said, staring at the newcomer. Edward stiffened at my response. "Charlie has mentioned your name in passing, and since it isn't exactly a common name in the current generation, I made the connection."

"You're a quick study, Seth was right about that. However, that doesn't explain why you're here." He was about to take a step toward me, but Carlisle held his arm out to block him.

"Then if you know who I am, you should also know the strange circumstances of my arrival here in Forks. I've been trying to figure out, ever since I got here, exactly why I was drawn here. Seth has his own thoughts on that, but I don't believe he is right, I think I'm here for another purpose." I stared up at the two vampires, trying to explain myself without continuing to sound insane.

"I'm not following," Carlisle said, making a quick glance toward Edward, hoping he'd share some missing information.

"I know about what's coming, I know about the cloaked vampires," I said.

Carlisle's mouth dropped open, and he turned toward Edward again, who remained unmoving, unaffected by my comment.

"It was just a dream," Edward said. "He had a dream about the Volturi, it turned into a battle, and he saw Seth, in his wolf form, get killed. Seth believes Brady's dream was meant for him, to give him time to say goodbye to his family and friends. Brady believes that his dream was meant to spur him into action, and that he is the missing factor from the dire scene he envisioned. He believes that since he was never in the dream, in physical form at least, that this means that if he _were_ there, that it would make the difference; as if one frail human could have an impact in what we will be facing."

"I didn't say I would be _human_," I snapped, resenting his cold, emotionless presentation.

"What do you mean?" Carlisle said, cocking his head to one side.

"He came here to have us change him into one of us, what audacity he has," Edward said, glaring at me, his golden eyes now blazing.

"You can't be serious Edward, that can't be the reason he is here," Carlisle said, shaking his head.

"How do you know all of this," I demanded. "I haven't even said a word." I returned the glare to Edward, no longer feeling any effects from his beautiful appearance.

"Well isn't that why you're here?" Edward hissed. Carlisle had turned toward me again, an almost pleading look in his face.

Just then, the door opened again, and Bella stepped out. I saw behind her several other vampires peaking out in interest. Then I noticed there were others peering from the windows as well, obviously I was causing a commotion. I'm sure having a human coming to visit the vampire house wasn't exactly a common event.

"Did someone order lunch?" A strange European-sounding voice rang out from behind the door. I heard several hisses, and Bella turned quickly and slammed the door shut behind her.

"Why are you here?" Bella demanded. "This isn't the time for visitors."

"I'm not worried about it," I grunted.

"Of course not, you're hoping that one of us will bite you. You don't seem to grasp the fact that most vampires wouldn't just stop at one bite, they wouldn't be able to stop period. You'd end up as nothing more than another victim, just another snack for an immortal," Edward said coldly.

"Edward!" Carlisle hissed.

"It's true, maybe he needs to know the truth so that the fear he claims he doesn't have, will finally sink in his thick head."

"Edward, you're not serious, that can't be why he is here." Bella said, staring at Edward in disbelief.

"He's right," I said. "It's the only answer for why I was drawn to Forks. There can't be any other explanation, I'm meant to become one of you, I'm meant to help." I looked down, expecting a quick and unanimous rebuke.

I was then startled by an intense growl, and then I heard the sound of large paws stalking up behind me. The look on the faces of the three vampires was of anticipation, probably expecting me to turn around and shriek in fear. I couldn't, I wouldn't let that happen.

I slowly turned around and found myself face to face with a huge russet wolf whose teeth were bared menacingly.

"Hey Jake," I said calmly, and then turned back around to face the vampires, whose mouths were now gaping.

Then another voice appeared, "Who is this?" It hadn't come from the front, but from along the side of the house. I turned to see a small young man approaching; he had very Middle Eastern features. He was smiling at me very cheerfully.

Carlisle immediately stepped down to block the boy, and Jacob's nose nudged me in the back of the head. I was immediately annoyed, I felt like I was being treated like helpless child.

I spun around to face Jacob, "SIT!" I yelled, and pointing toward the ground. Jacob huffed, sounding like a laugh, as several other echoes of laughter rang out from within the house.

I turned back around to see the young man still looking at me, a big grin on his face.

"Benjamin," Carlisle said to the young man.

"I'm not going to hurt him Carlisle, I'm just curious. There is something about him, I can't quite figure it out, but something...compelling." Benjamin was still smiling at me thoughtfully.

"Benjamin is right, there is something there, but even I can't figure it out," another man said, approaching from the same direction as Benjamin.

"You think there is something, some latent potential Eleazar?" Carlisle asked.

Suddenly there was silence and all eyes were on Eleazar.

"Definitely something, I just can't figure out what exactly. It's something I've never felt before, but then again, maybe it's nothing at all," he said.

"Could it be the ability of premonition?" Edward asked intently.

"No! What I saw _can_ be changed, it is not a premonition," I argued, glaring at Edward once again.

"Anything is possible," Eleazar said. "I've felt the ability of premonition before, with Alice and others, but this doesn't feel like that." He shook his head disappointedly. "I wish I could be of more help."

Benjamin suddenly moved closer to me, within mere inches. The young man merely smiled at me, looking deep into my eyes. I should have been frightened I guess, as his eyes weren't golden, but an ominous dark ruby color. Then unexpectedly, and drawing several gasps from the onlookers, he reached up and touched my face with his fingers.

"There is definitely something intriguing about you, if it was within my power, I'd give you what you seek. However, this is Carlisle's home and therefore his decision, not mine." He sighed in disappointment and then stepped back, still smiling.

"Carlisle, we don't have time for this. No matter how...," Edward paused briefly, looking at Benjamin, "intriguing, he might be. You know what a newborn is like, how difficult they are to deal with during their first year; we just don't have the time. I'm not prepared to put my daughter's life in the hands of a newborn."

Carlisle sighed. "Yes of course Edward, you are. Our time is short, definitely not enough time for him to become rational; it would be too dangerous for everyone here."

I saw Benjamin glance from Carlisle, to Edward, and then to Bella. When he stopped on Bella, he grinned. "Apparently not every newborn vampire reacts like that, isn't that right Carlisle. Take Bella for example, I heard that she was in full control from day one. That means there is also a chance that he could be the same," he said, turning his attention back to me. "If there is the chance that he may have the power we need to stop the Volturi, and thereby saving the child, then surely it would be worth the risk."

"No Benjamin! If Jasper were here, he would explain to you all of the risks of newborn vampires. I'm not about to put my family in jeopardy based upon possibilities and what ifs," Edward hissed.

"If Bella could remain in control, then why couldn't I?" I said, offering a pleading look to Edward.

It made me angry that he was so against me, when I knew so strongly that this is what was meant to be. If I didn't succeed, then Seth and the others would all die.

"You don't know that!" Edward snapped. "You're just guessing that is what will happen. If your dream wasn't a premonition, then it doesn't _mean_ anything."

I looked up at him in shock, how did he know what I was thinking? Could he read my mind, is that how he knew why I was at their house? I felt intense anger ripple through my body, how unfair it was to steal people's thoughts and twist them around like that.

"I'm not twisting anything, you're the one who is reaching," he sneered.

"Apparently not, apparently there are others here who can see something that you obviously can't," I said, nodding toward Benjamin and Eleazar.

Edward lunged toward me, and suddenly Jacob was standing between us, while Carlisle grasped Edward's shoulders.

"C'mon Brady, I think it's time to leave," came a familiar voice from behind me.

I spun around to find Seth standing there, dressed only in a pair of ragged jeans; the sweat was flowing down his beautiful smooth chest. His hands were trembling and his eyes were on Edward. For a second, I couldn't take my eyes off of his perfection; my mind was suddenly lost in impure thoughts. Hearing Edward groan, I quickly realized that he knew what I was thinking too.

"Keep my thoughts to yourself!" I said, turning to give Edward a contemptuous look.

Then I suddenly felt Seth's intensely hot hands grab my shoulders, and then he began to yank me back toward the truck.

"Wait, I'm not done yet," I declared, trying to pull away.

"Yes, you are, I won't let you do this," Seth snapped. "Jacob told me everything, how can you be so stupid."

"Seth, leave me alone, this is my business not yours. This is my choice, my decision; it's the only way to..."

"Stop right there," Seth interrupted. "I'm not going to let you end your life because of some misguided belief that you are responsible for our lives."

"It isn't misguided, it's true," I argued. By now, Seth had shoved me into the passenger side of truck; obviously, he wasn't planning to let me drive home. When I tried to open the door to jump out, Jacob had already positioned himself against the door to stop me. "Dammit, this isn't fair. I'm not a kid, I can make my own decisions," I complained.

"Then stop acting like a spoiled brat throwing a temper tantrum," Seth snorted, trying not to smile.

I huffed, then relaxed back into the seat, resigned to the fact that I wasn't going to get my way, at least not today. I glanced toward Edward who was smiling triumphantly, and I quickly cleared my mind. I knew that, no matter what, I couldn't think about what I might do, at least not yet.

I was silent for the drive home, Seth was extremely apologetic, even though I knew his stance on my decision would never change. He was somehow convinced that I was doing this for _him;_ when in truth, this had more to do with _me_ than anyone else. It was what I was meant for, I knew that, and apparently so did some of the other vampires. Unfortunately, Edward wasn't convinced, and neither was Seth.

Much of what was said earlier swirled through my mind during the drive. Apparently, vampires had special abilities, and obviously, Edward's was mind reading. It was now quite obvious that I really didn't understand vampires at all, there was more to them than I had realized. I needed to know more. I looked over at Seth, who glanced at me, then quickly turned back forward, his head bowing in guilt. I tried not to become distracted by his perfect body, but that was almost impossible, so I looked away as well. I suddenly hatched a plan, there was one person who could tell me everything about vampires, and now I hoped his guilt could be used against him. I couldn't help but smile deviously.


	8. Chapter 8

10

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 6**

_Destined Decision_

When we reached Charlie's, Seth didn't say a word as we got out of the truck. As I headed toward the house, he looked at me sheepishly.

"Do you want me to leave; I'll understand if you do."

"No Seth, I don't want you to leave, besides, you still have my truck keys, it's my only set," I lied, suddenly thankful Edward wasn't there.

"That's good to know, since I'll be holding onto them for a few days, until you have had time to come to your senses."

"Why doesn't that surprise me," I grunted.

"I should have known when I saw you at the Cullens' driveway last night that you were up to no good, but I thought maybe it was just curiosity."

"You're being such a jerk Seth; honestly, my decision has nothing to do with you, but everything to do with _me_."

"Yeah sure, whatever you say. Even if that _were_ true, I still wouldn't let you end your life, even if it means the end of mine."

I immediately headed up to my room, with Seth following close behind. He quickly took his usual spot, sprawling out on my bed, his expression in full expectation of a forthcoming tirade.

"Thank you for being a friend, Seth. I really do appreciate it," I said, not looking at him. "Maybe you are right, maybe I don't know what I was asking for. There is still a lot that I don't know, and knowing might help me to better understand the dangers." I glanced over at him; his eyes were fixed on me in contemplation.

"I wish I could tell you, but Jacob said..."

"Jacob told you not to reveal _your_ secrets, right? He didn't say anything about what you could say after I found out, did he?" I was hoping the answer was no, who knows how strict Jacob's orders had been.

"Um, hmm, I guess you have a point. Maybe knowing _might_ help dissuade you from being stupid," he said.

I quickly moved to the bed, sliding in beside him, he moved over slightly but didn't seem the slightest bit uncomfortable by my closeness. He was no longer sweating, even though his body was radiating heat like a furnace. I couldn't help but marvel at his tawny toned skin, the smoothness of his body, the narrow but defined muscles. I felt my own body temperature begin to rise, I'm sure my face was now flush; thankfully he wasn't looking at me. I fought the urge to throw my arm over his body and lay my head on his chest, knowing that doing so could be disastrous to our friendship. I then remembered the thoughts I had earlier, the thoughts that Edward was aware of, and gritted my teeth. If Edward told Seth about that, I would find a way to make sure he regretted it.

"So where should I start?" he asked, looking over at me suspiciously.

"I don't know. Maybe start with the Cullens, why do they have golden eyes, whereas Benjamin had a more dark red color?"

First Seth explained the history between Quileutes and the vampires. Apparently, the vampires are the natural enemy of the Quileute werewolves, having had a past together that spanned centuries. The difference now, was the Cullen family, and their choice of not using humans as food. Almost a century earlier, the Quileute tribe had made a treaty with the Cullens, that as long as they never bit a human, or trespassed on Quileute land, they would allow the Cullens to live in peace. It wasn't until Bella's arrival, and subsequent joining of forces between the Cullens and Quileutes against a common threat, that brought the two sides closer together. While many of the Quileute werewolves were still uncomfortable around vampires, Seth and Jacob were the exceptions to that rule. Seth had developed a bond of friendship with Edward during the time the two side joined forces, and Jacob, because of his connection to Bella and Renesmee. Seth also pointed out that Jacob is the rightful heir to the Quileute legacy, as his great grandfather was the tribal chief, and the one who originally made the treaty with the Cullens.

Seth then went on to tell me more about the Cullen family and their history, which eventually branched off into more detailed stories about newborn vampires, immortal children, and the Volturi.

I learned about the previous year's battle with the newborn vampires, which was the event that triggered the werewolves and vampires to unite; I now understood Edward's concern about newborns. He also explained about the vampire's special abilities, along with their strengths and weaknesses. He told me about Bella's pregnancy and her subsequent transformation into a vampire, including details about her and Edward's daughter Renesmee. He also mentioned Irina's betrayal; Irina was part of the Denali clan, along with her sister's Tanya and Kate, who had always been considered part of the Cullen's extended family. Irina had been upset with the Cullens for joining forces with the werewolves during the battle with the newborns; she held a deep-seeded hatred for the werewolves, as they had killed another vampire that she considered a friend, even though this 'friend' was trying to kill Bella at the time.

Seth then delved further into the past, including information about Carlisle's history, and how the Cullens became a family. It turned out that Carlisle had transformed Edward, Esme, Rosalie and Emmett; although each was on the verge of death at the time, and was the only reason he agreed to transform them. Alice and Jasper joined their family later, although each had already been transformed by that time.

He was short on details regarding the Volturi though, he was only aware of some of their history and their reasons for moving against the Cullens. At some point in the past, Carlisle had spent time with Aro, Caius and Marcus, who made up the Volturi; Aro was the leader of the group, while those who surrounded and protected them were considered the Volturi guard.

The problem with the Volturi came about because Irina, one of their closest friends from the Denali coven, mistakenly believed that Renesmee was an immortal child, which was a violation of vampire law, transforming a child into a vampire. Irina was unaware that Renesmee was a conceived child of the union between Edward and Bella (while Bella was still human); Renesmee was not transformed unnaturally. The Volturi, in a sense, were the "police force" of the vampire world; they were the ones who imposed laws and brought justice when the laws were violated.

There was one thing that concerned me about the reasons for the Volturi moving against the Cullens, and that was the possibility that their quest for justice was merely a ruse. Their most likely intent, according to what Edward and Eleazar believed, was to destroy the Cullen family and acquire powerful new members. When I thought about it, this idea made more sense, especially since in my dream, there hadn't been any explanations or negotiations. From my dream, I didn't have a sense of any type of diplomacy from the cloaked vampires, only the desire to fight and destroy.

"What the Cullens are hoping for is that they can get the Volturi to pause long enough to allow them to explain about Renesmee. Then they can present evidence that she is not an immortal child, and the witnesses that they've gathered, can support their claim." Seth sighed. "Unfortunately, Edward doesn't believe they will pause long enough to listen."

"Do you honestly believe that if they are coming to acquire new members, that even with a pause, they would be dissuaded from their goal?" I abruptly got up from the bed and began pacing as troubling thoughts swirled in my head.

"We have to try at least, even if it doesn't work," Seth said.

"Funny, I just thought of something. If all they needed was a pause, for the Volturi to stop and reassess...," I hesitated, mulling over my idea.

"Yeah?" Seth added, suddenly curiously.

"I'm sure the sight of several giant wolves moving out to flank the Cullens at just the right moment would be enough to make them pause, probably enough to make them wet themselves too," I snorted.

"You might have something there; I'll have to mention that to Jacob. You're right though, I'm sure that sight would be enough to freak anyone out, vampires included."

"So tell me Seth, do werewolves have any special powers or anything?"

"Well, not really. I mean, we have speed and strength, and our teeth can slice through pretty much anything, vampires included, but other than that, nothing special like the vampires."

"No mind reading or anything?" I was trying to make sure I wasn't missing anything that might come back to bite me later, no pun intended.

"No, nothing like that. Although, we do have one very unusual ability, although, I'm not sure I would call it an actual ability."

"What is it?"

"Remember the night you arrived here in Forks, and I mentioned the imprinting thing?"

"I remember you mentioning something about maybe I was going to imprint on your sister, and suddenly your mom freaked out, is that what you're talking about?"

"Exactly."

"You said that it was like 'love at first sight', but a thousand times more powerful, right?"

"Imprinting is basically like finding your soul mate. From the moment you spot that person, nothing in your life matters, except that person; the bond that you share is unbreakable. I know it sounds weird."

"What if you don't like that person?"

"That never happens, the person you imprint on is basically 'made for you', so there's never a chance of you not liking them."

"At what age does this imprinting thing happen?"

"It can happen at any age. Now here's another aspect of it that tends to creep people out, but if they only took the time to understand it, then it wouldn't sound so bad."

I just looked at Seth, waiting for him to continue; I wasn't liking the sound of this 'imprinting' stuff.

"Basically, we can imprint on anyone when they're at any age. So take Quil and Jacob, both of them imprinted upon children."

"Ugh Seth, that's disgusting!"

Seth suddenly glared at me, then shook his head. "That's exactly what I was talking about, people form opinions without hearing everything. I didn't think you were that type of person though."

"I'm sorry, it just… sounds bad."

"Anyway, as I was saying… it can happen at any age. However, that doesn't mean it has anything to do with sex, which is the first thing most people think. Basically, even if the werewolf is an adult at the time, upon imprinting with someone who isn't an adult, the werewolf's sexual desires go dormant- completely. They will not awaken again until the object of their imprinting has reached adulthood."

"Ok Seth, I'm going to be honest, even with that, it still sounds creepy."

Seth chuckled a bit, then said, "If it weren't for the fact that I've seen it firsthand through the wolf mind connection, I probably would agree. However, seeing if for myself, I know how imprinting effects you, and I know how pure both Quil and Jacob's feelings are."

"Does that mean you could end up imprinting too?" In a way, I didn't want to know the answer, or rather, I was afraid of the answer.

"It's possible. It just sort of happens, even if we don't want it to happen, we don't have a choice. If it happens it happens, if not, I'm ok with that too. I'm happy with my life right now as it is."

Now that I had an overabundance of information to sift through, including the stuff about imprinting, which I'd rather have not known about, I was anxious to put everything into perspective. As I stood there staring out the window, cycling through two hours worth of Seth's dissertation, he started to snore. I smiled, at least I won't have him sitting there stressing over what I'm contemplating.

A short time later Charlie arrived home, and then Sue showed up again. The clanking of pots woke Seth, who all too willingly headed downstairs with me to eat; apparently, if the choice came down between food and sleep for Seth, food would win.

I was surprised to find another person in the kitchen, and then I understood what Seth meant about his sister Leah. When Seth introduced me to her, she merely glowered at me for a second before glaring off in the opposite direction; there was definitely no imprinting happening between us. I chuckled.

Seth then patted my back and whispered, "It's not you, she's like that with everyone."

Leah head spun back toward us and she growled at Seth.

"Leah, mind your manners, you're not at home now," Sue snapped. Leah frowned, and turned away.

Leah was silent during dinner, never bothering to look at anything else besides her food. Apparently, Seth wasn't the only one who seemed to love eating; Leah acted like she hadn't tasted real food in months.

After dinner I told Sue to leave the plates, I would wash them later; I hated cooking, but I didn't mind cleaning.

Just before he headed out the door, Seth waved my truck keys at me and said, "This is for your own good, I promise I'll give them back in a couple of days."

"Fine, but if Charlie gets mad about me taking his cruiser," I paused, "it'll be on _your_ head." We both laughed as he shut the door.

"What was that about? What do you mean taking the cruiser? Did he have your truck keys, he's not old enough to drive you know." Charlie's face was red, obviously not understanding the joke.

"It was just a joke. He took my keys because apparently he believes I've been bad, he's putting me in time out," I snorted.

"I don't understand, what did you do?"

"It's one of those little 'need to know' things that you don't want to know about," I chided, walking past Charlie on my way to the kitchen. Charlie just huffed and turned back to the TV.

As I slowly washed the dished, I contemplated my options. I pretty much knew everything I felt I needed to know about vampires, including the apparently painful transformation process. Three days of agony, but then again, it was _only_ three days. Three days of pain for an eternity of life, it seemed like a bit of an uneven trade to me.

It wasn't the three days of pain that concerned me though; it was the newborn vampire aspect. Apparently, Bella was the only vampire that the Cullens knew that hadn't gone through the newborn stage. No, that wasn't right, because Carlisle had been able to fight the urge as well. So there was a chance that I would be able to maintain control, I wouldn't become like those other newborns. No, I definitely wouldn't be like them. If everything I believed about my dream was the truth, and my transformation was the key to saving them, then obviously I would be in control, I had to be. If I were doomed to become a crazed newborn, then everything I believed, everything I learned my entire life, would be pointless. No, I would be in control, I have always been in control, this would simply be the culmination of my evolution. I would finally become my true self, finally becoming complete.

Once again, my mind was drawn back into the ultimate problem, how was I going to convince Carlisle to change me? With Edward so adamantly against it, feeling that his daughter's life was at risk, there was no way Carlisle would go against Edward on this; but there had to be a way.

Then the answer hit me, almost literally. While reaching over to grab a bowl, a large serrated knife fell off the counter, nearly stabbing my foot. As I was picking up the knife, the most dangerous and diabolical thought came to mind; I smiled wryly.

The next morning as I prepared myself, I kept repeating over and over, "desperate times call for desperate measures". It was late morning when I left, having retrieved the spare set of truck keys from my backpack. As I approached the Cullens' driveway, I pulled over and dialed the number Seth had given me. I hated to involve him in this, but he was absolutely crucial to my plan. I prayed that he would forgive me for what I was about to put him through, but if I succeed, when I succeeded, he would thank me later. I had gone over all the potential variables in my head, if Seth wasn't home, I would find someone who could get a message to him. Otherwise, I would have to wait until I could reach him.

"Hello," Seth said in a sleepy voice, my heart thudded.

"Hey Seth its Brady, listen carefully. I'm almost to the Cullens' place, but I want to talk to you first. Meet me half-way down their driveway, I'll be waiting for you." I hung up, leaving no room for argument.

I hit the gas, knowing that I needed to beat him there. My plan was now in motion, no time for second thoughts. Once I turned onto the driveway, I cleared my mind of everything. I didn't know how far Edward's ability reached, so I had to be careful not to give anything away. Years of meditation allowed me to shove my thoughts into darkness, knowing that I could only reveal them again at exactly the right time.

I stopped my truck in a widened area of the long driveway, a place giving me enough room to pull completely off the road. I got out of the truck, preparing myself, but keeping my thoughts clear.

It was just a few moments later that I heard heavy rustling in the forest. I wasn't sure if Seth would appear in his human form, or his wolf form. I'd prefer his human form, because at least then I knew he'd be capable of handling the situation the way I wanted.

Then Seth appeared from behind a tree, walking toward me, a look of irritation on his face.

"Thanks for coming, I'm sorry about this, but you're the only one I could ask for help," I said nervously, trying to compose myself.

Seth stopped; a look of confusion replaced the irritation. "What do you mean help? The only thing I'm going to help you with is getting back into your truck and getting back to Charlie's."

"I'm sorry Seth, that is not how this is going to go down. I've made my decision, and it'll be resolved either positively, or negatively. If it's negatively, then I guess I won't be able to thank you properly for everything you've done for me."

"What are you talking about," Seth's eyes bulged, "what are you going to do?"

As he began walking toward me, I quickly retrieved the long serrated knife that I had hidden behind me. A look of horror crossed Seth's face as he seemed to have some comprehension of what I was about to do.

"Get me to Carlisle, Seth. Everything is in his hands now, I've made my choice, and now it is up to Carlisle. Please tell Edward that I know that I am right, I will not become like those crazed newborns, I promise."

Seth lurched toward me, but it was too late. I plunged the knife deep into my stomach, and managed two deep and solid slices before Seth disarmed me.

I collapsed into his arms, the blood streaming from me, the pain overwhelming. I barely registered the fact that Edward was suddenly there, muttering something into his cellphone, Seth was crying and screaming my name. It all felt surreal, was it the pain that caused this feeling, or the sudden loss of blood?

"Give him to me Seth, Carlisle is clearing the house, he'll be waiting for us," Edward said stoically.

"Carlisle has to save him Edward, he has to. I can't believe he was so stupid, I never expected this from him, how could he do this." Seth sobbed.

"I don't know what Carlisle has planned, I'm not sure if we should..."

"You have to Edward, you just have to. He is doing this to save _me_, because he believes I'll die if he isn't there to save me."

"Let's go, we'll let Carlisle decide."

Suddenly I felt the air blowing by me, like I was flying. My vision was getting blurrier, I was also feeling very weak and my body was growing increasingly numb.

The next thing I knew I was laying on a table, Carlisle was shining a light into my eyes and tearing off my shirt.

"I'm injecting him with morphine now, at least he won't be in any pain, no matter how this turns out," Carlisle said calmly.

"You have to save him, you have to, this is all my fault," Seth croaked, choking back tears.

"This isn't your fault Seth. I made this choice; it is the only choice that I could make. It is why I am here, I know it," I managed to wheeze out.

Then suddenly I coughed, and blood poured out of my mouth and nose. I felt the cold numbness growing, the light was fading, and everything seemed to be trying to pull my eyelids shut.

"This is your call Edward," Carlisle said, "is he worth the risk, the potential, could he know more than us, or is the risk too great?"

"Please Edward, please," Seth pleaded, "You can't let him die. Give him a chance at least, deal with the risk if he should turn out to be one."

"So if he turns out to be a monster, you'll be ok with us killing him then?" Edward scoffed.

"If it comes to that, I will kill him myself," Seth sighed, "just give him the chance he asked for."

"You do realize that this is a violation of the treaty, this could complicate everything," Edward said.

"I'll take responsibility; I'll answer to Jacob."

"Answer for what Seth?" Jacob's voice boomed from behind.

I was barely able to remain conscious; I was fighting with everything I had to keep my eyes open.

"Edward, he doesn't have much time left, if we don't do this soon," Carlisle interjected, his voice agitated.

"We have to let Carlisle save him," Seth said, "Please Jake, give him permission to save my friend, please." Seth's voice was breaking, I felt awful for what I was putting him through.

Jacob groaned. "Seth, this could put Nessie in danger, if he..."

"Jake, the rest of the world doesn't revolve around Nessie; this is about _me_ and _my_ friend, just like before it was about _you_ and _your_ friend Bella. He will die if Carlisle doesn't save him. I've already agreed that if there is a problem afterward, I will deal with it myself before he can become a danger to anyone." Seth's voice trailed off on the last few words.

"Fine, but this is on you Seth," Jacob snarled. "Go ahead Carlisle, save him if you can, but everyone better be prepared if things go badly afterward."

I was now at my limit; I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer. The morphine had kicked in so I couldn't feel a thing. I only barely registered the quick series of bumps that jostled by body, several places on one side, several on the other. I had no clue what was happening, only that I was falling into blackness, falling further and further into nothingness.


	9. Chapter 9

8

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 7**

_Mental Escape_

My fall into darkness was suddenly stopped short, instead I found myself delivered into a flaming red hell.

There was no pause or any form of noticeable transition from one to the other. One moment it was calm, peaceful darkness and the next it was brilliant red fire. I screamed in agony, but it was only mental, no words escaped my mouth; for some reason I was unable to move, I was just lying there being burned alive.

My first thought was that they had decided not to save me; they were just burning my body to get rid of me. That didn't make sense, but nothing at the moment made sense. What was happening to me? I wished that the calm, peaceful darkness would return.

An errant thought, "three days of agony—", "—seemed like a bit of an uneven trade." What was I thinking when I thought that? I screamed internally as the fire's intensity seemed to increase. How worse could it get? I screamed again. Dammit, Seth was right, I AM stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. This burning pain would drive me insane and then I'd turn into an uncontrollable monster.

NO! I yelled to myself. You are stronger than that, you can fight this, you must maintain control.

Another errant thought, Seth lying dead at my feet, because of my failure.

It was that thought that affected me; it brought some resemblance of focus back to my brain. The burning was still there, but I felt a brief pause in how it affected my thoughts. I remembered meditation; I remembered how I was able to use it to escape the pain of my parent's death.

I began to focus my thoughts, concentrating on compressing everything into a dark bubble and then lifting that bubble up and out of my body, separating me from the pain. It wasn't easy, the bright red flame kept piercing the darkness, but I couldn't give up, there was too much at stake.

Finally, the bubble broke free, and floated painlessly upwards out of my burning shell.

The first things I noticed upon my mental escape were sounds and voices. The burning had been so completely consuming, that all external activities had been blocked. Now that I was clear of that, I was able to hear the world around me. Hearing was the only one of the five senses that I was still in touch with, although I wasn't sure why. Maybe it was because sight and sound were always part of my meditation, and so directly involved in what I concentrated on. Of course, my sight was gone because my eyes were closed, locked in place by whatever was holding me down. No matter the reason, I was thankful for being able to perceive the outside world, even if it was in a limited way.

The voices started out unfocused but gradually became clearer.

"So the morphine had _that_ type of effect on her, it didn't do anything for the pain?" Carlisle groaned. "But Bella didn't say anything about it not working."

"Of course not, she wouldn't, you know what she is like. She was probably worried that it would hurt me to know that she was in pain, so she kept it from me," Edward said, his voice irritated.

"You mean he's in pain, a lot of pain, but he can't move or respond in any way?" Seth's voice was heavy.

"Actually, no, not anymore," Edward said, his voice now sounding curious.

"What do you mean Edward, what is happening to him?" Carlisle asked, now equally curious.

"It seems he deserves more credit than I had given him. It appears he has found a way to separate his mind from the pain; he is able to hear us, but not respond physically; very interesting." Edward mused.

"Are you serious? How did he do that?" Carlisle asked.

I began speaking to myself, hoping Edward would understand my thoughts. "I'm using the same type of meditation that I used when I had to deal with my parent's death. It allows me to escape the physical and emotional pain for awhile, by stepping out of my body," I thought.

"That's very ingenious, definitely not something a normal person could do," Edward replied out loud.

"What? What is going on Edward?" Seth demanded.

"He is using a form of meditation; it allows him to escape physical and emotional pain," Edward said.

"How do you know that, is he able to communicate with you," Carlisle asked.

"Yes. He is able to think his replies to me, and I pick them up like I do with normal mind reading."

"Edward, please tell Seth that I am sorry, I didn't mean to hurt him. I realize that I put everyone through a lot today; I wish there had been another way. Unfortunately, I don't think there were any other options. I'm sorry," I thought.

Edward sighed, and then relayed my message to Seth.

"Sorry huh? Well you're going to be sorry when you wake up, you idiot," Seth barked. "Actually, I'm just kidding. I know this is what you wanted, and although it would have been nice to have gone without all the blood and gore- you best hope I don't have nightmares over that by the way- but I'm just glad that you are going to be ok." Seth paused. "He is going to be ok, right?"

"I'm not sure, he seems to be in control right now, amazingly in control, but there is still a lot of time left, anything could happen," Edward cautioned.

"Tell him I will be ok, I will not put him into the position of having to be the one to 'take me out'. He's been through enough thanks to me; I won't put any more burden on him," I thought.

Edward relayed my message. "That's good," Seth said, "just make sure you keep your word on that."

"Tell him to get some rest; apparently I'll be here awhile. Speaking of, exactly how much time do I have left to bake?" I thought.

Edwards once again relayed my message to Seth, and then gave me his best guess, "I'd say you have another 48 hours or so. If Alice were here, she could tell me _exactly_ how much time." He sighed. "Bella was around 50 hours, so I'm guessing that you'll be around the same, or maybe less. It seems plausible that those who go into the transformation willingly, complete the process faster than those who fight it."

"That's good to know. Now please excuse me while I concentrate, I'm not sure I can maintain this meditative state if I don't concentrate on it," I thought.

"I understand, let me know if you—" he chuckled, "well, I was going to say need anything, but I can't think of anything that you'd need."

"Nice… thanks for that," I thought sarcastically.

Then, very quietly and apparently close to my ear, Edward whispered, "Seth is a good kid, I can understand why you feel the way you do about him, and I won't tell a soul; that is yours to tell if you choose. I also hope that we can become friends, although please don't be offended that I don't think of you in _that_ way."

"Thank you, I think," I thought back. "And yes, I hope we can become friends too, as long as you aren't offended that I don't think of you in that way either."

He chuckled softly. "Then we should get along nicely."

"What is it Edward?" Carlisle asked.

"Nothing really, it's just that, I'm beginning to believe that maybe Benjamin and Eleazar were right," Edward mused.

I returned to my comfortable darkness, pushing all thoughts away, just concentrating on nothingness. Conversations distracted me; it caused the bubble to sink back toward my body, toward the fiery burning hell. I was just barely able to catch the bubble after conversing with Edward; I didn't want to risk losing focus like that again. The idea of slipping back into the fire was terrifying.

For once, I found myself being quite patient, simply basking in the quiet darkness. It also could have been because I knew what the alternative was, and there wasn't any way to rush through this; it was either quiet darkness or searing agony. Yeah, tough choice there.

I was entertained from time to time, overhearing conversations as people checked in on me. It was Carlisle who stayed with me constantly; Edward had left, he was trying to help Bella learn to use her shielding ability. Seth left only once, at the insistence of Jacob and Carlisle.

"Seth, you need to go explain things to Charlie, although shower before that, you're a bloody mess kid," Jacob said.

"I don't want to leave him, why can't Bella go explain, or have Leah do it," Seth argued.

"Leah, you're joking right. Imagine what _she_ would tell Charlie," Jacob barked in laughter.

"But what if..."

"He's not going to be awake for at least another 24-hours, if not longer. He isn't in any pain, Edward would know if he was, he'll be fine Seth," Carlisle said softly.

Seth sighed. "So what am I going to tell Charlie exactly?" he asked.

"Just tell him that he discovered the reason why he came to Forks, and that he's going to be staying here with us from now on," Carlisle replied.

"Are you sure Carlisle, you're going to let him move right in, just like that, a complete stranger," Jacob protested.

"Jacob, this may be hard for you to understand because you are used to the traditional family arrangements. However, as far as all of us Cullens are concerned, he is our newest family member, he is now another son to me," Carlisle said thoughtfully.

"Just like that, what if he turns out to be a monster, an out-of-control newborn? Then what? Will he still be your son then?" Jacob growled.

"Yes, no matter what, he is still my son. My venom flows through him, that isn't something I take lightly. Ultimately it will be his choice, whether he wishes to accept us as his family or not, but our minds are already made up."

"I don't think Edward would agree with you on that," Jacob growled again.

"Actually Jacob, he already has. Edward doesn't believe he will be a threat, nor does he believe Brady will be anything like a newborn vampire. In fact, Edward believes he will handle this better than Bella did," Carlisle said, a firm conviction in his tone.

"How can he know that? He's willing to put Nessie in danger like that, based on what? What would make Edward think he will handle this better than Bella?"

"Unlike Bella, Edward _can_ read Brady's thoughts, and sees things that neither you nor I can be aware of. Brady is exhibiting remarkable, no, amazing abilities as we speak. He has been able to separate his mental consciousness away from his physical body, taking himself out of the pain. Considering how much pain he started with, I don't know anyone, myself included, who would have the mental strength or control, to do that _while_ being consumed by shear agony," Carlisle said.

"Whatever," Jacob sneered. "I'm planning to be here when he wakes up, and if he loses it..."

"He's not going to lose it Jake, he's stronger than that. You don't know him like I do," Seth interrupted.

"Know him Seth? The guy has only been here a couple of days, how could you possibly know him?" Jacob snarled.

"I just do Jake. From the moment I met him, there was something about him, something magnetic, almost magical. He understands everything so quickly, and accepts them without hesitation. I truly believe him when he says that this is what he was meant to be," Seth added.

"Mean to be? Yeah, like bloodsuckers are part of the divine plan or something. What divinity would create such monsters? That's just ludicrous to even think," Jacob chided.

"Ahem," Carlisle cleared his throat. "Are you about through, Jacob?"

"Yeah, I guess I am, not like what I think makes a difference anyway," Jacob replied.

"Honestly Jacob, I'm a bit surprised at your hypocrisy," Carlisle scolded. "Considering that you have imprinted on a half-human, half-vampire; which obviously shows that such a creature isn't forsaken. Also considering that this child would never have come to be, had it not been for a vampire. So I hardly think you are in any position to criticize vampires."

Jacob groaned. "Sorry doc, I'm just stressed out. There is so much happening all at once, and having Nessie in the middle of it all..."

"I understand Jacob, but that doesn't give you the right to take a free shot at _him_. Remember, he is doing this because he believes that he can help save Nessie, and the rest of us too. So ultimately, if he is correct, then maybe you should rethink your own beliefs," Carlisle quipped.

"Ok ok, geez. Although, is it even possible for one person to have that much influence over the imposing Volturi forces?"

"I don't know Jacob. Our kind has no limitations on what abilities we can manifest. Some vampires have stronger abilities than others; there is no rhyme or reason why certain vampires develop certain abilities. What we do know about Brady is that he appears to be special, very different from anyone we have ever experienced before. As for what that means, time will tell." Carlisle's voice was calmer now, more contemplative.

I took some time to mull over that conversation, suddenly feeling a tinge of insecurity. What would happen if I didn't have _any_ abilities? What if I was mistaken, and I got them all killed because I lulled them into a false sense of security. What if my dream was the consequence of my becoming a vampire?

Thankfully, those irrational thoughts were quickly overpowered by the strength of my beliefs. I was meant for this, and everything within me knew that to be true. Even the others, Seth, Benjamin, Eleazar, and now even Edward and Carlisle felt that I was somehow different. How different would I be? That was still a mystery.

Seth returned quickly from his trip to Charlie's. I didn't have a watch, but I still had some sense of time.

"How did things go with Charlie?" Carlisle asked.

"Very good actually," Seth said. "He simply said, 'I pretty much expected something like that would happen' and that's where he left it, he didn't even ask any questions."

Just then, I heard Edward and Bella's voices as they entered the room.

"Has there been any change?" Edward asked.

"None, he's still the same," Carlisle replied.

"I wish I would have had some way to escape the burning, some way to detach my mind like he can," Bella said. "I'm curious to see how he turns out, just like everyone else I guess."

Just then, everything changed. One moment a strange shock jolted through my body, then suddenly my protective bubble burst, immediately returning me to the burning flames. Between my sudden frantic thoughts, I heard equally frantic voices.

"Bella, what did you do?" Edward said in a panic.

"What happened, Edward, what's going on?" Seth's voice cracked.

"I didn't do anything, I just touched his arm, that's all," Bella replied defensively.

"Something happened, I don't know what, but when you touched him, his thoughts disappeared. I can't hear him now, I can't hear anything from him," Edward said, still panicked. "Carlisle, what could be happening to him?"

"I don't know, he doesn't look like anything has changed, his heart still beats, his breathing is unchanged," Carlisle said, his voice now shaking.

"Is he going to be ok?" Seth barked.

"It's tough to say, it's possible that his ability to mentally escape changed somehow, he's not exactly someone I'd call normal. In any case, the reality is that we can't do anything for him now anyway, we can only wait, and hope that everything is ok," Carlisle said, trying to recover a sense of calm.

"Carlisle, do you think that maybe this changes things a bit, from the outcome we'd expected?" Edward asked.

"You mean him being in control when he is transformed, you're thinking that he might become dangerous after all?" Carlisle asked.

"We've got to get Renesmee out of here," Bella shrieked.

"Calm down Bella, I'm not saying that is how things are going to turn out, neither Carlisle nor I know anything beyond the fact that something has changed. We don't know if that change is positive or negative, and we won't know until he awakens," Edward said.

"We can't take that chance," Bella argued.

"Please Bella, there is no need to panic. There are more than enough vampires here to handle any development. Although, it would be best to apprise them of the situation, we'll need a few of them present when it's time," Edward said.

"Edward, I don't understand why you're being so calm about this, what is _he_ to you anyway? You don't owe him anything," Bella chided.

"He is my brother now, Bella; he is also Carlisle's new son, which also makes him your brother as well. That not withstanding, he is also my friend, and Seth's friend," Edward replied.

"I don't get it Edward, I really don't," Bella said stiffly, "I'm going to go warn the others."

"Bella, please..." Edward began to say, but his sentence cut off with her abrupt departure.

"Thank you Edward," Seth said. "Thank you for sticking up for him."

Edward sighed. "I'm sure she'll come around when everything turns out ok, she's just a little tense. I can understand how she feels, but I'm not going to overreact to the unknown."

"That's exactly right," Carlisle said. "We don't _know_ what is going on, for all we know, it could turn out to be a positive development."

Funny, 'a positive development' he said, this while I was seeing the flaming red colors pulse across my inner eyelids, just as they had when I was burning before.


	10. Chapter 10

6

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 8**

_Discoveries_

It took a few seconds for my thoughts to calm themselves before I realized that I wasn't feeling any pain. There was no burning, no fire engulfing my body, I still felt as numb as I had been when I was inside my protective bubble.

I couldn't understand it, but then again, I didn't have much time to ponder it either, as out of the blue, another strange jolt rocked my body, after which, images and internal voices started popping into my head. It was like going to a website and being bombarded by a ton of pop-up windows, or sitting in the security office of a major casino surrounded by all the video monitors. I thought for a few moments that I had going insane, that somehow my brain was fried. However, slowly I began to tune-in individual windows, and made a startling discovery; these were actually people's thoughts and visions; images as seen through their eyes.

"I really hope Brady turns out ok, I don't want to have to destroy him."

"Please for mercy's sake let him be ok."

"I can't believe Bella is acting like that, she doesn't seem to care about him at all; girls suck."

I smiled internally, knowing that the last words were Seth's thoughts. I figured that the other two must belong to Carlisle and Edward, I couldn't imagine anyone else thinking about me in such a way. Besides, seeing through their vision, I could see that they were watching me. It was strange, seeing myself lying there, knowing what was happening to my body, but not actually feeling any of it.

During the next few hours, I worked on understanding and controlling this new ability. I was able to learn that the closest windows to the center of my mind were of those who were physically closest to me, as the windows spread out to the left and right, the outermost windows were of those who were more physically distant from me; although I had no idea exactly how far that was. Feet, miles, I had no clue.

I could listen to several windows at once, mute whichever ones I didn't want to hear, or make one the complete center of my attention; I could also minimize the windows, so that my mind was totally clear. I hopped through minds getting an idea of what was happening around me, although some minds weren't as easy to understand as their thoughts were in a foreign language. From what I was able to gather, only a few people seemed concerned about my presence, most were absorbed in the belief that the Volturi would destroy them all.

One mind in particular was quite panicked about the Volturi coming, this person couldn't decide whether he should flee now, or wait. His mind was extremely bizarre, flittering between thoughts without taking time to absorb them, like an extremely fast slide show. I imagined that whoever this person was, they were probably quite insane.

Most of my initial focus was spent in Seth's mind, hoping to hear the thoughts that I wanted to hear. However, his thoughts were mostly of sorrow and anger.

"How could I have let this happen? I should have known he would do something like this since it was the only way for him to get what he wanted. Why didn't I disable his truck instead of just taking the keys, how stupid of me. Now if something goes wrong, if he turns into an out of control newborn, will Jake really make me kill him? Argh, I can't think like that, I just couldn't do it. He has to turn out ok, if not I'll never be able to forgive myself."

Seth's thoughts made me feel sick, realizing what I was putting him through. But surely, things wouldn't turn out badly now, now that I was positive that I was in full control. Although, I also realized that if putting him through this was the only way to save his life, and the Cullen's lives, then surely he would let go of his guilt afterwards. However, I soon had to escape Seth's mind because he was really depressing me.

"What is Edward thinking? I just don't get it. He allows Carlisle to create a newborn vampire _now_, when there is so much to do. Let alone the fact that he is putting Renesmee in danger, no, he's putting everyone in danger. For a total stranger that has no ties to anyone here, there is just no reason to do that. We'd all be better off if they'd have just let him die; after all, he was the idiot who stabbed himself. They could have just chalked it up it up to a suicide, and none of us would have had to be put in danger."

It didn't take me long to realize that these were Bella's thoughts, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised considering how she reacted earlier, but I somehow thought that she would be more understanding considering how her father had welcomed me.

Soon my attention was brought back to myself, as I heard an external conversation that I quickly tried to match together with the internal thoughts that went along with it.

"Eleazar, I'm glad to see you, I'm hoping you can help," Carlisle said.

"What can I do for you, Carlisle?" Eleazar asked.

"I'm wondering if you can get any sense of what Brady's abilities might be."

"Give me a few moments and I'll see what I can sense about him."

Then three things seemed to happen simultaneously, first, that strange jolt of energy surged through my body again, and then I heard Eleazar think, "Oh great, another shield" and at the same time, several of the thought windows changed color. I didn't know what the colors meant, but before I could investigate, I heard Eleazar speak.

"Is there something in the water down here? What is it with all the shields, Carlisle? The last two vampires welcomed into your family both turn out to be shields."

"Are you serious?" Edward asked incredulously. "So he is like Bella?"

"I think so," Eleazar said. "It's hard to tell what type of shielding powers he will have, but he is definitely blocking me, what about you?"

"I was able to hear his mind up until Bella touched him, and then suddenly his mind vanished from my thoughts. I was very concerned, it happened so abruptly, that I thought maybe something had gone wrong with the transformation process."

"Unlikely, I've never seen anything go wrong with vampire transformation. It was probably more likely that he had been transformed just enough that his own shielding powers reacted to those of Bella's."

"That does seem plausible," Carlisle interjected, "It'll be very interesting to see what type of shield he possesses."

"So he's going to be ok then?" Seth asked quietly.

"Nothing is certain, Seth, but if Eleazar is right, then everything should be fine. Before his shield activated, he was fully in control of himself," Edward said.

Their conversation soon began to bore me; of course, _I_ knew I was ok, so none of their speculations concerned me anymore. I was more concerned with why certain mind-windows had changed color, including Edward's, Bella's, and Eleazar's. There were several others that shifted color as well; some seemed to have a different shade of color, although others remained unchanged, including Carlisle's and Esme's window.

As I concentrated on each window individually, I could feel something unique about them, each seemed to make my mind and body sense something, almost react to that sense. When I concentrated on Edward's thoughts, I had this strange but brief tingle in my mind. When I viewed Eleazar's, I had this strange tingling in my heart. With Bella, it felt like my body was being pushed. Other colored windows had those same types of reactions, although some were similar, but yet slightly different.

The fact that I was able to _feel_ something was strange in itself, but the sensations themselves I didn't understand. Why some windows, and not others? What did the colors and sensations mean? I knew it meant something, I just didn't know what.

Was this part of my 'shield' ability? Although that in itself didn't make a lot of sense, because I was able to read minds, so to me, it was obvious that I wasn't a shield. From what Seth had told me, vampires only have one ability, so I certainly couldn't have two. But what was up with Edward not being able to hear my mind, and now Eleazar's abilities didn't work on me either. What was going on with me?

I minimized all of the mind-windows and concentrated on trying to put everything together. The sudden blocking of Edward's mind came when Bella touched me, so I started from that point. It took me some time to piece it all together, my theory anyway. The nice thing was, I knew I still had several hours before the vampirization process was finished, so I had time to be patient and think. My mind was becoming increasingly more and more fluid; it also seemed to be expanding in depth. It irritated me that I kept going back to computer analogies, but it felt like my brain was suddenly a high-powered CPU with seemingly endless memory. Needless to say, I could compute the possibilities quite quickly, even though I wasn't in any hurry.

When I finally formulated my theory, it was quite startling to me. If it turned out to be true, then this would make all the difference in the fight against the Volturi. However, I wouldn't know until I could test it, but I couldn't do that until I could interact with the other vampires that were here at the Cullens' house.

With this theory came another realization, based upon something I heard in Bella's thoughts. There was only one person I could confide in about this revelation right now, and that person was Bella, of all people, the one who would rather have me dead than alive. Bella's, and apparently now mine, were the only thoughts that Edward couldn't hear. If my theory turned out to be true, then Aro must not learn about my abilities before the time is right. If he knew, then he would make decisions that could possibly stop me from having the effect that I had to have.

I wasn't sure if Bella would go along with the plan I was hatching, but thanks to things I learned from her thoughts, I was betting she might be more willing to go along with me, if it meant protecting those thoughts. Obviously, I had already proven the lengths that I would go through to save everyone, so a tad bit of blackmail wasn't out of the question for me. As with Seth, I'm sure after everything is said and done, she'll understand and forgive me—I hoped.

For a long period of time, I laid there scrolling through the windows of thoughts that saturated my mind. I was getting familiar with these vampires, and learning about their skills through their mind and observing their talents through their own eyes. I began to realize that each vampire skill resulted in a different colored mental window; this was why some of them were colored. Those without talents, had no coloration, but those with color, had a color that appeared to represent their individual skill. As I learned about their skills, I began mentally matching the coloration to the particular physical sense that I felt when I initially observed their mental window. Apparently, each ability gave me a unique physical sensation- probably to alert me of their ability, which was most likely the same reason for the colored windows. It appeared that the Cullens had assembled quite a team of talented vampires… lucky for me, very unlucky for the Volturi.

All at once, I heard something strange, and then realized that the sound was coming from within my own body. I hadn't been giving it any notice before, but now it had my entire attention; the sound was the erratic beating of my own heart. It was racing faster and faster, it threw my mind into a panic, wondering what was going on, then I heard the voices and thoughts from around me.

"Sounds like it's almost time," Carlisle said.

"Yes, I think your right, I better go get the others," Edward replied.

"What's going on?" Seth said in a panic.

"Don't worry Seth, nothing bad, the transformation process is almost done," Carlisle said calmly.

I heard Edward's thoughts; they were full of concern, as were Carlisle's. Seth's thoughts were more of fear and emotional angst; if I could have physically sighed, I would have.

However, at the moment, my body seemed to be involved in a battle between life and, well, whatever was happening to me; I preferred to think of it as just an evolution of life, it wasn't death. No matter what it was called, it was coming soon. I still couldn't feel my body, but I could certainly hear it. My heart was sounding like a bad lifter in a car engine, hammering away until it would finally shatter. My heart would soon be just like that lifter, finally reaching its breaking point, and then it would stop, forever.

For some reason this thought made me panic, realizing my heart was about to stop, it would be the end of humanity for me. Even though I knew that _I_ wasn't going to cease, I still felt this sudden fear of the unknown ripple through me. It seemed like every one of my worst fears decided to wait until the last moment to spring forth and ambush my brain. All of these terrible thoughts were spiraling around my mind like an out of control vortex, and I couldn't seem to calm them. Not until, abruptly, my heart loudly thudded twice, then once more, and then it was silent. At that very moment, all of the fears evaporated, and my mind became clear and controlled once more.


	11. Chapter 11

10

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 9**

_From Twilight to Dawn_

When I heard that final beat, I suddenly felt like I had somehow survived the twilight that was my human life, and was now awakening to a new dawn.

"Brady, can you hear me?" Carlisle asked.

Startled, I inhaled deeply, and became instantly aware of several unusual scents, including the smell of, um… wet dog. I couldn't help but laugh when I realized that it was probably Seth or Jacob.

"Brady, are you ok?" Carlisle's voice was now full of concern after hearing my laughter.

"Just give me a few moments please," I said. "All of this is so new; I'm trying to take it in slowly so that my new brain doesn't get overwhelmed."

Suddenly my mind was intrigued with my own voice, the strange new tone that was resonating from me; I then began to realize how _new_ everything really would be to me.

"I understand, I'm sure it is all a bit confusing," Carlisle reassured.

"No, not confusing, more like amazing. I guess I'm just a bit more methodical in my thought processes, I like to make sure that I understand everything that I'm taking in."

Carlisle laughed, then said, "You sound a lot like Edward."

"Is that so Carlisle, and here I was thinking he sounded like you," Edward added jokingly.

"Maybe," Carlisle replied, "but I always thought you were a lot more methodical than I."

As they bantered back and forth, I returned to concentrating on the smells surrounding me, trying to decipher all of the mysterious scents. My eyes were still closed; I wanted to gain as much as I could from each of my new senses individually, before combining them.

It was tough to know exactly what I was smelling, or rather, tasting. It seemed my nose no longer functioned as it used to, as now any air that was inhaled registered directly with my sense of taste. It was a very strange feeling at first, but I tried to be patient and focus on learning my new body, instead of fretting over the old one I had left behind.

The scents reminded me of various things; honey, lilac, roses, pine, sunflowers, damp earth, saltwater, and wet dog. I chuckled again, silently this time. I could make out two sets of wet dog smell, Seth and Jacob must both be there. I could have easily verified that by checking for their thoughts, but I had minimized all of the thought-windows so that I could concentrate on my new physical senses.

The other strange scents, along with the wet dog smell, were coming from the area closest to the door. Those nearest to me smelled of honey and lilac, a very sweet smell, but also a hint of damp earth and pine. Carlisle and Edward I assumed, as they, along with Seth, were probably the only ones who'd dare be this close to a newborn vampire.

Once I was sure that I had smelled everything that I could for the moment, which probably lasted about 30 seconds, I moved on to my sense of hearing. I concentrated on everything from the loudest sounds I could hear, and then moved down to listening for the faintest. I immediately heard the two hearts beating in the room, Jacob and Seth's, both were beating very rapidly, obviously each of them were nervous, albeit for different reasons. I heard the breaths taken by those around me, some were faster than others; again, probably nervousness. I was feeling a bit guilty for causing such stress, but I wasn't about to rush through my experience.

I could hear quiet conversations taking place just outside of the house, conversations about me. I could also hear the sound of cars passing; this confused me for a moment until I realized that they must have been coming from the highway; I was amazed that I could hear _that_ far. I pondered that for a couple of seconds before moving on.

I then heard heavy breathing, a nervous breathing, along with the sound of large feet, not feet, paws. There must be a very large, very nervous animal nearby. I considered that for a second, probably another werewolf lurking close in case of trouble. Again, I could have sought out the thoughts, but I wasn't going to cheat. Instead, I tried inhaling to see if I could gain its scent, but unfortunately, there didn't appear to be any air movement through the room. With the lack of an open window or any airflow from outside, my sense of smell was limited. Being momentarily handicapped, I decided to cheat.

Quickly breezing through the mental windows, I quickly found the thoughts I was looking for.

"What is going on in there? Jacob said that the new leech was going to wake up at any time. I swear, if that thing touches my brother, Jacob won't need to worry about any problems with the Cullens, I'll take him out myself. Seth is so stupid I just don't get it. Of all the people in the world he could become friends with… he always finds himself involved with those filthy bloodsuckers."

It didn't take long to figure out whose thoughts those belonged to, Seth's scary sister, Leah. I could now understand why people didn't seem to want to be around her, there wasn't a pleasant thought in her head. She seemed to be the exact opposite of Seth in every way; it was hard to see how they could be related.

By this time, a minute had passed, and I decided not to push my luck with the increasingly impatient and stressed gallery.

I slowly opened my eyes, wanting to absorb every detail of the moment. I found myself staring up at a white spackled ceiling, with bright track lights shining down from them. My vision was so clear, I could see all of the tiny fissures in the spackling, I could see individual particles of dust, and I could even see the filaments within the light bulbs. The light shimmering from the bulbs danced in a brilliant rainbow, an eight-colored rainbow. I tried to figure out the eighth color for a few moments, but couldn't think of what, if anything, came after violet.

"How are you feeling Brady, are you doing ok?" Carlisle asked. I could hear several quickened breaths, I quickly scanned the thoughts that were closest to me, and all of them were expressing nervous concern.

"It's funny Carlisle, that name just doesn't seem to fit anymore; almost like trying to put on a pair of pants that I wore when I was five, I feel like I've outgrown it."

Quiet laughter came from those who were watching, even Carlisle and Edward seemed amused.

"Would you like us to call you something else? Like maybe Dracula, or how about Lestat?" Edward mused.

"That's a good one Edward, although they're not very original. I guess I'll stick with Brady for now, unless I decide later I'd prefer to be known as Armand, or maybe Marius would sound better?"

Everyone in the room laughed again, some with an uneasy laugh, but at least it was better than all the anxiety they had earlier.

I was still lying on the table staring up at the ceiling, I'm sure it was making everyone even more nervous that I hadn't moved. In fact, I had not moved from that position since I had began the transformation, at least not of my own volition. Edward had been nice enough to find suitable clothing for me to wear, considering my other clothes had been covered in blood, definitely not good to have around with a house full of bloodthirsty vampires. I was glad that Seth was gone to Charlie's when Edward stripped me down and redressed me.

Snapping my thoughts back to the present, the time had come to learn what was in store for me physically.

Slowly I raised my right arm, well, my intent was for slowly, but instead my arm abruptly jutted straight up into the air; the sudden movement caused several of the onlookers to flinch, which I saw out of the corner of my eye. I heard Edward thinking that he wished Jasper was here, because if I didn't need his calming effect, then it seemed several others around me did.

I slowly moved my hand around, being keenly aware of how it felt to move it, and how it reacted to my thoughts. Unlike in my human body, where I had to consciously think and will the muscles to move, now things seemed to react with just a thought, a desire, there was no longer a need to 'will' the movement. No wonder my first movement resulted in such a drastic reaction, because I had forcefully willed my arm to move; this would definitely take some getting used to.

"What are you thinking about?" Edward said. "It's driving me crazy here, not knowing what you are thinking or what we should expect."

I laughed; the sound reminded me of woodwinds playing. "Sorry that I'm making everyone so nervous, I'm just taking my time to let all of this sink in. There really is a lot to get used to, so I'm trying to make sure that I'm fully in control of everything."

I then sat up, it occurred in one solid movement. There was no longer a feeling of muscles contracting or the rolling of the spine, everything happened at once; I simply went from lying down to sitting straight up. In another fluid motion, I jumped from sitting, to standing.

I immediately saw the faces of those waiting to either welcome me, or destroy me, depending on how I handled the transformation.

There were three that were standing close to me, Seth, Carlisle and Edward. Then there were seven others standing against the far wall, near the door. I knew there names, I had been reading their thoughts for hours, and seeing life through their eyes.

Jacob was on the far left, his expression was of extreme intensity, his black eyes were blazing. Next to him stood the large form of Emmett Cullen, he was tall, with dark hair and golden eyes. Then came Rosalie Hale, Emmett's wife, the beautiful blond member of the Cullen family. Beside her stood Tanya, the strawberry blond from the Denali coven and next to her stood her sister Kate. Then came a familiar face, the young man Benjamin, was smiling at me gleefully. That smile contrasted sharply with the man beside Benjamin, Amun was glowering at me distrustfully, his red eyes blazing with the same intensity as Jacob's.

With my abrupt movement from sitting to standing, several of those onlookers flinched. I couldn't help but laugh again.

"Sorry," I said as I grinned, "it's just kind of funny how everyone is reacting; every little movement seems to cause almost mass panic."

"They're just afraid you are going to attack them," Seth said, grinning back. "Although, I'm not worried about it." Jacob, who had moved forward to stand beside Seth, sharply elbowed him in the ribs causing Seth to exhale in a huff.

"Well, if that's the case, then I guess everyone can relax. I have no intention of attacking anyone, at least not today." I said, smirking again.

"That's not funny," Carlisle said. "They have a rightful reason to be concerned."

"Sorry," I said. "It's just that, well, I've never had anyone react to me like this, it just seems silly to me. I'm sure there is a reason for fear, but personally I don't see it."

"Maybe if you knew how dangerous newborn vampires were, you would have had more respect for us here, and not put us all in danger," Amun said, his voice heavy with a middle-eastern accent.

"Amun, that isn't fair, he did this because he believes he can help us, I do not believe that he would have intentionally put us in danger; obviously he knew what he was doing." My defender was Benjamin.

"Thank you," I said, looking at Benjamin, who smiled in return. "I certainly would not have put anyone in danger, had I believed there was a danger. However, I knew deep within myself that this was the path for me, and I knew that I would not be dangerous to anyone."

Although this was a lie, even during the transformation I had concerns that maybe things wouldn't turn out the way I had expected, and that maybe I was the cause for my dream, not the solution. I wasn't about to show them that though, I had to put on a brave front to convince my audience.

"How could you have known? Nobody knows such things," Amun said gruffly.

"I guess if you have enough faith in yourself, if you know yourself completely, then it's not impossible to know such things," I replied. Amun just huffed and shook his head, it looked like he was going to say something more, but Benjamin glared at him, and he fell silent.

"Maybe that is all there is to it," Carlisle said. "Maybe it really is all about having a choice. If you choose to become a vampire, then maybe that is what allows someone to maintain control." He was looking at Edward, who seemed to ponder the idea.

"Well honestly, I can understand how someone who didn't have a choice might react very differently when they awaken. To have their humanity stolen from them, especially if they don't feel it was right for them, I can imagine how they would be consumed by anger, maybe even to the point of rage. That certainly would be enough to cause them to be unable to focus or maintain control, at least that's how I see it," I said.

"Yes exactly," Rosalie said. "I never felt that this life was for me, I have never believed that I was meant to become a vampire, so I can understand what you mean."

"But Rosalie, I never..." Carlisle began to say, but was interrupted.

"Even though that's how I feel, Carlisle, I know that you didn't change me for malicious reasons, you wanted to save me. That is the difference, because I was already dying. Most newborns are not dying; they are simply changed by a vampire to serve their own selfish purposes. That is what I mean, when I say I can understand Brady's point, that robbing them of life would cause them to become enraged and out of control."

"That is probably true," Edward said. "It would be interesting to hear Jasper's thoughts on this topic."

Suddenly every member of the Cullen family was looking very sullen, as if Edward had said something taboo.

"I did notice something earlier though," I said, turning to Seth. "I realized that, well, you and Jacob both smell like wet dogs."

Everyone laughed, including Seth and Jacob. "Funny, but I hate to burst your bubble, but you don't exactly smell like a bed of roses yourself," Seth barked back, pretending to plug his nose and scowl.

"Edward, where is Bella?" I asked, already knowing the answer. The only reason I asked, was because I thought they might think it strange if I hadn't wondered; I wanted to cause as little suspicion or intrigue about my abilities as much as possible.

Jacob stiffened at my question, his thoughts shifting back to Renesmee as usual. All of the Cullens suddenly seemed uncomfortable, and the other vampires looked at each other in concern.

"She is with Renesmee right now," Edward said.

"That's smart, definitely better to be safe," I replied, shrugging.

Edward sighed. "Don't take it personally, this is nothing against you."

I just smiled. I _knew_ it was personal, and it was difficult for me not to express that fact. However, I also knew there was too much riding on me protecting my secret, so I said nothing.

"So how are you _feeling_?" Carlisle asked. "Aren't you in pain, I'd venture to guess that your throat is raging with fire right now."

It honestly wasn't a big deal until he mentioned it; now suddenly the burning filled my every thought.

"Um, it honesty wasn't a problem until you mentioned it and caused my mind to focus on it, before it was just a slight burning sensation," I growled.

"Sorry, I just assumed that..." Carlisle began to say, but I interrupted.

"Don't assume anymore, ok. I can handle the burning as long as my mind isn't directed back to thinking about it. Honestly, it really was nothing, definitely nothing that wasn't manageable before."

Suddenly everyone in the room was tense; something in the tone of my voice must have exposed a shift in my temperament.

I sighed deeply, and then reclined back against the table that I had been lying on. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you, I just don't like people assuming that I am like everyone else, I have always prided myself on being different."

Everyone was now staring at me with incredulous looks on their faces.

"What?" I asked, beginning to become irritated again.

Carlisle approached me now, flanked by Edward, I saw Emmett and Rosalie look at each other with concern.

"You have nothing to apologize for; I am the one who should be offering an apology. You are right, I shouldn't make assumptions, and it appears that my observations about vampires over the years and Jasper's experiences have clouded my own expectations of newborns." Carlisle smiled, then stretched his arm out and set it on my shoulder. The crowed tensed, seeming to prepare for some expected negative reaction on my part.

I chuckled. "What, are you all expecting me to rip his arm off or something? Geez, give me a break, if I haven't gone all psycho before, I doubt it's going to happen now."

"It's nothing personal Brady," Carlisle said. "They're not used to seeing this type of reaction from a newborn. We experienced this with Bella, but we weren't sure if she was just the exception or not, as it turns out, apparently not."

"Actually," Edward said, "you seem to have come through this even better than Bella. Your ability to focus, along with your ability to control your emotions, is unheard of. You weren't kidding when you said that you are different." He put his hand on my other shoulder and smiled.

"Welcome to the family," Carlisle said. "That is, if you want to be a member of our family, I guess I shouldn't assume."

I suddenly felt bad about what I had said earlier. "Thank you Carlisle, that means a lot. Of course I'd like to be a member of your family. Besides, someone has to keep Edward on his toes," I said as I reached up and put a hand on each of their shoulders.

Suddenly Edward's face got serious. "Tell me what happened during your transformation, what happened after Bella touched you, I haven't been able to hear your thoughts since then, its really been bothering me."

"I'm really not sure, although honestly, I think I'd like to quench this irritating thirst before thinking about anything else." Not that the thirst was actually bothering me, but I figured it was a good way to avoid the subject for a while longer.

"I understand," Edward said. "I'll take you out and show you how we hunt."

"Maybe Emmett and Seth can join us," I said, seeing Emmett's reaction to Edward's idea of taking me alone. Seth, well, just because I wanted him along.

"No way!" Jacob growled. "I'm not letting Seth close to a feeding newborn, who knows how you'll act in that situation."

"I'll be fine," Seth argued. "He won't hurt me, and besides, with Edward and Emmett there, I won't be in any danger."

I smiled, and then looked at Jacob, "Well Seth, you never know, maybe I'll suddenly find the scent of wet dog appealing, or maybe I'll be just as likely to develop a sudden craving for bull shit."

Suddenly the room was filled with echoing laughter; I thought Emmett was going to cause an earthquake with his laughter alone.

Jacob was the only one not amused, he just glared at me and said, "If you so much as..." but Edward interjected himself.

"Don't worry Jacob, Emmett will be sure to remain close to Seth just in case."

"I'm not happy about this, but I'm not going to order Seth around, even if he's feeling suicidal," Jacob grumbled. Then a loud howl came from outside the house; it was Leah expressing her disapproval as well.

"Now that that is settled, shall we go hunting? What's on the menu today, bear, elk, mountain lion?" I asked, smirking.

"We'll play it by ear, let's see what we come across," Edward said. "I'm sure we can find something _interesting_ for you." I was suddenly worried about what he meant by interesting, considering how he said it.

"Fine, you lead, I'll follow," I said.

With that, the four of us headed downstairs and out the front door. I was slightly distracted by how fluidly my body seemed to move now; it was so effortless, almost like gliding instead of walking.

"So tell me Brady, when you realized that everyone tensed after your reaction to Carlisle's assumption, you relaxed back against the table. Why did you do that? That is a normal reaction for a human, but very unusual behavior for a vampire," Edward said.

"Really? I don't know, it just felt natural to do, it's just something that I would have done as a human, so it felt like a normal reaction to me," I said.

Emmett and Seth were staring at Edward and he just shook his head in disbelief. "You are definitely different from any vampire I have ever met, I can't wait to see how much more different you really are."

"Be careful what you ask for," I chuckled.

Edward stopped and pointed toward the river. "We're going to jump over the river, and then..."

Before he could finish, I enthusiastically launched myself toward the river.


	12. Chapter 12

7

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 10**

_Prowess_

I honestly didn't have a clue what I was doing, but I had never been one who liked to be _taught_ anything, I preferred to learn on my own if I could.

I heard the others following quickly behind me, I could also hear the pounding of heavy paws, obviously Seth had phased into his wolf form.

It only took me a split second to reach the river, and as I approached, my body seemed to react naturally to the situation. Without even a thought about forcing my body to make the effort of leaping, I was already in the air, sailing over the river with one quick and easy bound.

As I descended back to earth, my body reacted to the oncoming obstacles of tree branches. I twisted and turned effortlessly, avoiding everything that was in my path. I landed softly on the forest floor, nothing had been disturbed, not even a leaf was touched. I smiled. This was so amazing; I couldn't believe it was real.

It didn't take long for the others to reach me, although Seth was slightly lagging behind Emmett.

"Um, are you going to keep doing that, or are you going to let me finish my sentences?" Edward asked sarcastically.

"Sorry, I couldn't help myself; I guess I'm a bit excited. When you said jump the river, well I just reacted, the thought sounded like fun." I looked down at the ground, trying to appear sheepish.

"Try to contain your enthusiasm a bit, we still need to be careful that you don't, er, get into trouble," Edward said.

Although in his head, he was thinking about me accidentally stumbling across Bella and Renesmee, who were in a cottage nearby. It was hard for me not to reassure him about that, keeping this secret from him was going to become annoying.

"So what next?" I asked.

"We'll head north until we find what we're looking for. Just keep following me, don't go off on your own no matter what you might smell, is that clear?" Edward said, suddenly focused.

Visions of his previous experience with Bella flashed through his mind, he was worried about me picking up the scent of humans and going after them.

"Afraid I'll get a whiff of some humans and decide to make them lunch?" I said curtly.

Edward stiffened, Emmett's teeth clenched, and Seth whimpered.

"You know, it would help if I _knew_ what a human smelled like, so I knew what to avoid. Although, I guess as the saying goes, if it smells too good to be true, it probably is." I laughed out loud, although only Seth seemed to find humor in my comment.

"This really isn't something to joke about," Edward said. "Even older vampires have trouble controlling themselves around humans, so there really is no telling how you will react, so it's best not to test that issue just yet."

"Geez Edward, calm down, if you keep taking things so seriously all the time, you're going to get wrinkles," I laughed. "But seriously, what I said was the truth. If something smells so powerfully irresistible, then this should be a clue for me that it is something I should avoid."

"He does have a point Edward," Emmett said. "Although, maybe we should find some humans to test him on, I'd be curious to see how you would react to him hunting a human. Somehow I don't think he'd go easy on you like Bella did during your first hunt together, and you wouldn't have your mind-reading advantage with Brady either."

Edward glared at the now chuckling Emmett with ferocity. "This isn't something to joke about Emmett. If you aren't going to help me, then maybe you should just go back home."

"I'm here to protect Seth, remember," Emmett replied, looking at Seth, who was not amused by the idea of needing a protector.

Edward pursed his lips; he was delving into Emmett's head, which for me was a very weird experience. Reading Edward's mind while he was reading someone else's mind, while at the same time I was also reading the other person's mind. It created a very strange stereo effect, which might not be so bad had it not been Emmett's twisted mind. Or maybe it was the fact that Emmett knew Edward would be looking into his mind, so he conjured up the most disturbing images he could think of.

"Nice visual Emmett, you best hope that that doesn't happen, I don't think even Rose would forgive you if you let _that_ happen," Edward said through his teeth.

"It's just a thought, don't worry so much Edward, you don't want wrinkles do you?" Emmett said, and then laughed again.

"Um, shall we get on with this, my throat is on fire remember," I said. My head shifting from Edward to Emmett in exasperation.

Finally, Edward told me to follow him, and off we ran. Everything flew passed me in what appeared to be a slow-motion blur. It wasn't my sight that followed Edward; it was his scent that created the path that I followed. That was another strange experience for me, seeing how a smell could be so easily tracked at such high speed, like a bloodhound to the millionth power. Although, even with the strangeness of it all, the feeling of such speed was intoxicating, I truly felt like I was flying.

After what seemed like only a few seconds, Edward abruptly stopped. I almost ran smack into him, but was able to stop instantly; once again, my body reacted without a deliberate effort.

It took Emmett a few seconds to reach us, and Seth was right behind him. I didn't realize how fast Edward and I were, until I saw how long it took the other two to catch up. I hadn't even been trying to race anyone, but now my mind suddenly swirled with the possibility that _maybe_ I could beat Edward.

"What are you thinking?" Edward said, noticing my smile.

"I'm just wondering who would win if you and I raced," I said, looking back toward Seth and Emmett.

"Just remember, even if you're stronger or faster now, it doesn't really count. All newborns have an advantage, but after a year, then you will discover your real strengths and weaknesses." Edward smiled smugly.

I just shook my head. "Well then, I guess I'll wait a year and then challenge you to a race."

I caught Edward's thoughts shift to Bella, Renesmee, and then to the scene of the Volturi that he had seen through Alice's vision.

"Yeah, next year," he said as he turned around and faced away from us.

"So, what's on the menu? Elk, bear, or perhaps yak," I said flippantly.

"Ha, funny. Sorry, wrong part of the world for yak, so you will have to settle for deer," Edward said, still facing away.

"Edward, if we went further north, we might be able to find a bear or two," Emmett said, almost sounding like a plea.

Spinning around in a blur, Edward said, "Emmett, this isn't a hunting trip for _you_, if you're thirsty then you'll just have to settle for deer."

"I'll pass," Emmett replied, and then mumbled something under his breath, which sounded like 'sure take all of the fun out'. Seth barked in apparent agreement.

"Now that we're here, what am I supposed to do?" I asked.

"Inhale and take in the scents around you, then let me know what you find," Edward said.

Following his instructions, I inhaled deeply, soaking in and tasting everything that was around me. Many familiar scents like pine and wet earth, along with the scents of Edward, Emmett and Seth. Then an unfamiliar scent hit me, a musky tangy scent that perplexed me.

"I smell something, strange, just to the east. It's strange because I'm torn between feeling thirsty and feeling nauseated by it," I said.

Edward and Emmett both laughed.

"Deer doesn't smell nearly as good as bear," Emmett said, receiving a sneer from Edward.

"Anyway, it sounds like you found your prey," Edward said. "Between your new sense of smell and hearing, it will become very easy for you to find your target."

"Um, so do I just rush in and tackle it then?" I asked, receiving another round of laughter.

"We'll let you figure out the finesse part of hunting," Edward said.

I didn't care for the way his smile appeared to tease me. I knew from their thoughts that all three of them were anxious to see how I handled the hunt, but only two of them were hoping I'd do something foolish to share with the others. I smiled at Seth.

Without another word, I dashed through the forest, tracking the disturbing scent to its source. It didn't take long, there were four does in a clearing, and one of them, a particularly large doe, caught my attention.

I didn't slow my stride, having chosen my target; I was there in a flash. Having considered, in a fraction of a second, the best and most graceful way to finish the hunt, I decided to throw a bit of my brief martial arts training into it. Reaching the doe, I swiftly dropped down and spun my leg around, catching the deer's legs causing her to fall over. Before she could hit the ground, I caught her head in my left hand and sunk my teeth into her neck, my right hand easily held the flailing body to the ground. As the hot refreshing liquid flooded down my throat, the flailing slowed and then ceased. When I was finished, I dropped the lifeless animal and rose to my feet.

I turned around to face my audience, who were all staring at me dumbstruck. I laughed because the look on Seth's face, a monstrous wolf with his mouth hanging open stupidly, was just too funny.

"So how was that?" I asked, already knowing the answer without needing to read anyone's mind.

"Uh, well—" Edward stammered. "I've never seen anyone with such a unique hunting prowess."

"I think someone has seen too many Jackie Chan movies," Emmett said, drawing a howl from Seth.

"Funny Emmett. I just figured it would be the easiest and cleanest way to do it. I wasn't about to run in and tackle it like a Neanderthal," I grumbled.

"Don't pay any attention to him Brady," Edward said. "I thought it was both powerful and graceful, a perfect combination of the two." He was looking almost sad now.

"So if it was good, then why do you look so unhappy?" I asked.

"Well, for the longest time, in the Cullen family, I have always been the one that everything comes easily to. I have always been the one who people expect to do everything perfectly," he said.

"So what's your point?" I replied.

He then flashed me his charming crooked smile, "I'm just not happy that I now have competition. So far, you've mastered things even faster than I did when I was a newborn. This means I'm going to have to work even harder now."

All of us laughed and then I said, "Well sorry about that, I can try to be a bit more clumsy," then grinning at him I continued, "nah, I don't think I could do that, even if I tried."

Edward punched my arm, "I somehow didn't think you could, it would be totally out of character."

"Yeah, whatever," I laughed. "I'm still thirsty though, so let's do a bit more hunting."

"Sounds good, we'll let you lead the way," Edward said.

"You're just waiting for me to make a fool of myself aren't you?" I asked.

"Well, apparently you're a natural at this too, so you shouldn't need any more instructions."

If I didn't know better, I would swear he was being sarcastic. However, his thoughts were more of encouragement then jealousy. He actually wanted me to learn faster, so he was pushing me to do so.

"Fine then, I'll lead," I said. Then I darted off toward the northeast, pursuing the scent of the three fleeing deer.

I took them down in similar fashion to the first. Catching one, draining it, then pursuing the others. Their speed was nothing compared to mine, no matter how fast they ran, it only took a few seconds for me to track them down. By the time I had finished with the fourth, I was completely full and incredibly bored.

I sighed. "I was really expecting this to be a lot more fun and challenging, but it just seems so, easy."

"You have to give grizzly bears a go, they're much more fun," Emmett said, his face beaming.

"I have to agree," Edward said, "Deer aren't much of a challenge, but we didn't exactly come out here today looking for entertainment."

I then walked toward Seth, but Emmett intercepted my path.

"Oh Emmett, get out of my way, I just want to talk to Seth," I snapped. "Besides, I've had more than enough blood today anyway."

Emmett looked at Edward, who simply nodded. Emmett slowly moved out of my way, but kept close.

I just shook my head; this was really getting irritating fast. I was the type of person who valued privacy, so having every movement watched and scrutinized really grated on me.

Seth didn't seem the slightest bit afraid of me; in fact, it was almost as if he had read my mind, because as I approached him, he trotted around me, putting his backside toward Emmett and Edward, blocking their view.

I reached up and rubbed his furry wolf face, just staring into his golden-brown eyes and smiling. I caught a glimpse of confusion flitter through Seth's mind, but that was quickly covered by a feeling of excitement. He was replaying the images of me hunting through his mind, and then I realized that Jacob, Leah, Embry and Quil were all listening; Seth was showing them that I was in control of myself.

"Sucks to be you, I'd certainly hate to have other people rattling around in my head," I said, then glanced around Seth toward Edward and grinned. Uncharacteristically, Edward stuck his tongue out at me.

Seth huffed in agreement, and then rubbed the side of his face against mine. Again, a flash of confusion shot through his mind, but was quickly silenced by the chatter of the other wolves. I stroked his furry face once more, and then returned to Edward and Emmett.

"I think it's time to return home, I'm sure there are plenty of people worrying, thinking that I wiped you all out during my crazed feeding frenzy."

Edward and Emmett laughed. "To be safe, we should approach slowly so that they don't overreact to our sudden reappearance. Everyone is a little skittish these days," Edward said.

Emmett agreed. "I'm sure Bella and Jacob will be the most paranoid." Edward nodded.

"How about I follow, since I'm not exactly sure how slow slow is in this new body. Besides, they'll probably be more relieved seeing all of you first anyway," I said.

They agreed, and so we began our journey back to the house. I followed Edward and Emmett, while Seth followed behind me. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of his confused thoughts again, but he kept his mind light, thinking only of the exhilaration of the speed. Either he was just that mellow, or he was intentionally hiding something from those who could read his thoughts.

Within a few seconds we reached the river, and less than a second later, we were across it. We were greeted by several expectant vampires, and one agitated russet werewolf now back in his human form.


	13. Chapter 13

8

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 11**

_Tension_

Immediately upon our return, Edward began sharing the details of my first hunting expedition. Seth quietly disappeared into the trees, and quickly reemerged in his human form. He smiled at me sheepishly as he returned, but then shot a cold stare toward Jacob; obviously, Jacob still wasn't in any mood to trust me, regardless of Seth's opinion.

Seth was seething; his thoughts were becoming more and more angry as he stared at Jacob. I could literally see his muscles tensing and releasing, his body was shaking, and I could hear his teeth grinding together. It was disturbing, seeing this normally shy and timid young man, preparing to stand against his gigantic leader to defend me.

"It's ok Seth, don't let him bother you. Jacob is just being overly cautious because of Renesmee, and I understand that. Besides, this is my problem, not yours," I said, reaching out and grabbing his arm.

He turned and smiled at me, his body seemed to relax for a moment, but then tightened once again. "If he has a problem with you, then he has a problem with me. Besides, this isn't just about you, this is also about the fact that he obviously doesn't feel like he can trust me and my judgment," he said through his teeth.

"I think you're a little too close to the situation to be objective," Jacob growled, obviously having overheard our conversation.

"Like you should talk," Seth hissed back. "Maybe _you_ are being a bit too overprotective and paranoid."

Jacob started to move toward Seth, but Emmett interceded. "I think Seth is right Jacob, Brady isn't a threat, he's probably even less of a threat than Bella ever was."

"Whatever," Jacob said, then spun around and headed into the house.

After the pessimistic Jacob cloud disappeared, I was suddenly aware that our little scene was being observed by the surrounding vampires.

Suddenly, Benjamin stepped toward me, a brilliant smile shining across his face once again. His thoughts were filled with excitement… and desire. He was quickly followed by his mate Tia, who also smiled pleasantly. When Benjamin reached me, he casually reached out and grabbed my hand, entwining his fingers in mine. I was both shocked and bewildered, and then Benjamin began to tow me away from the others. Amun stared at us in shock, but quickly turned away when Benjamin shot him a glare of defiance. I looked back at Seth who simply shrugged his shoulders, another flash of confusion darted through him, yet once again he quickly shifted his thoughts.

"I finally get some time to talk to you," Benjamin said excitedly, his hand still wrapped in mine.

"Um, yeah, so what did you want to talk about," I said, looking awkwardly over my shoulder toward Seth, who had suddenly disappeared from sight.

"I don't know, everything," Benjamin replied. His grip tightened, a sudden erotic tone filled his thoughts.

I glanced at Tia who was walking slowly behind us; she didn't seem the slightest bit phased by the situation. In fact, she seemed to be ignoring us completely; she was giving us our privacy. I began to feel uneasy and uncomfortable, there was only _one_ person I cared to hold hands with, let alone had any desire for.

"Where should we start?" I asked, afraid of the answer.

"First let me show you something," Benjamin said playfully.

Now I was definitely afraid of _what_ he was going to show me, but a quick scan of his mind showed that it wasn't what I had feared.

He stopped, still holding my hand, he waved his free hand in the air, and suddenly the wind began to blow around me, as if it was caressing me. I felt a familiar jolt rock my body, I smiled, my collection was growing.

For the next few minutes, Benjamin demonstrated his abilities; he made the air swirl, the earth tremble, and the water from the river erupt in geysers.

"I would show you how I can control fire, except that I cannot create fire to show you. My power holds sway over that which already exists, so if there were already a blazing fire, then I could manipulate it," Benjamin said, somewhat frustrated.

I nodded, making mental notes of the things he told me about his abilities, I knew this information would come in handy later.

For the next couple of hours, Benjamin and I shared stories of our lives, but never once did he move beyond the platonic. Occasionally those thoughts entered his mind, but he did not act upon them. He seemed to understand already that my feelings were not available to share. Nor were his, I thought, as I glanced toward Tia, who appeared oblivious to our conversation.

"There you are," Edwards voice rang from behind.

As usual, I wasn't startled, I knew he was coming and already knew why.

"Hey Edward, what's up?" I asked anyway.

"Bella has agreed, after much reassurance, that you can see Renesmee now," Edward said.

This seemed to please him, although unlike so many others, I wasn't smitten by their angelic child. However, this was the perfect opportunity to detach from Benjamin and hopefully reunite with Seth.

"That's great," I said, uncoiling my hand from Benjamin's. Strange, I had been holding hands with him for over two hours, but neither of our hands were sweaty. I couldn't help but smile when I realized what this meant; I would never have to worry about obnoxious sweating and body odor again. Then more thoughts ran through my mind, no more trips to the bathroom, no more worrying about illnesses or disease, and no more upset stomachs because of stress; I would never have to worry about any of those annoying human traits ever again.

"What are you thinking about now?" Edward asked, frustration ringing in his tone. "It always bothers me when you just start smiling while you're staring off into space."

I laughed. "Sorry, I was just realizing more things about this new life. Nothing worth mentioning though, just little things."

"Between you and Bella, I'm going to go insane with curiosity." Edward smiled at me crookedly, and then turned back toward the house. "So, are you going to come see Renesmee or not?"

Not wanting to say what I really felt, I said, "Sure, sounds like fun." Then I leapt to my feet in one quick burst.

I turned back toward Benjamin, "Are you and Tia coming too?"

"We shall follow in a moment," he said.

"Ok, I'll catch up with you later then," I said. Then Edward and I darted off.

When we reached the house, everyone was gathered outside. I quickly scanned the crowd, but couldn't find Seth or his thoughts anywhere.

"Where is Seth?" I asked.

"He and Jacob had an argument, Carlisle thought it would be best if he went home and cooled down, we didn't need any more anxiety around the house," Edward said solemnly. "If you ask me, Jacob deserved everything that Seth said to him."

"What were they arguing about?" I demanded.

"You definitely have a dedicated defender, that's for sure. Seth was not happy with how Jacob was reacting toward you, so he expressed those sentiments to Jacob." Edward sighed. "I imagine pack life won't be pleasant for awhile."

"He didn't need to do that," I said through my teeth. "I don't want him getting himself into trouble because of me."

Edward nodded. "Jacob seems to understand, he isn't mad at Seth anymore. I talked to him and explained a few things more clearly; this seemed to calm Jacob down. Now whether or not Seth wants to continue the matter, that I don't know."

"I'll make sure he doesn't continue it," I growled.

Just then I heard a rapid fluttering heartbeat approaching, followed closely by a nervously thudding heartbeat, along with the smell of wet dog.

Bella and Jacob stopped about fifty feet away from me, Bella holding Renesmee tightly. Renesmee was staring at me with a bright, curious smile. Her scent wasn't the least bit appealing to me; I was surprised considering how certain they seemed to be that she'd be in danger.

Not that her smell was bad, it was just not interesting to me. Maybe it was subconscious, or maybe that it was wrapped up with the smell of wet dog, I don't know. I just knew that there was nothing remotely dangerous about her scent for me.

"Maybe I'm just bizarre Edward, but I was expecting to have to use some super self-control when I experienced her scent," I said as I looked into the eyes of the angelic child, "but I don't find anything appetizing at all. Is that normal?"

I heard a few gasps and murmurs flow through the gathering, but Edward just grinned.

"I have yet to find anything _normal_ about you," Edward said. "Not that that is a bad thing, quite the opposite."

"Do you believe him?" Bella asked.

Her thoughts were wracked with worry that I might be trying to deceive them so I could get closer to the child.

"He is telling the truth," said a small red-haired girl with a ringing Irish accent.

With that, everyone suddenly relaxed, instantly convinced by the words of the young Maggie.

"Thank you," I nodded toward her, as I felt another jolt shoot through me. "At least _some_ people believe me," I said, glaring at Bella.

"She's just being cautious," Edward said. "Don't be upset with her for that."

"I'm not upset with her, for _that_," I said coolly.

With Renesmee beginning to struggle in irritation with being held captive, Bella reluctantly released her. Instantly the child sprung toward me, leaping at me in the last moment like a bullfrog. I caught her in my arms, being careful not to squeeze too tightly. In the same moment, I found myself surrounded on all sides by tense vampires.

"Hey Nessie," I said, intentionally trying to irritate Bella, since I knew she hated that nickname.

She touched my face and began showing me tons of images; I felt a sudden but increasingly familiar jolt through my body. I was shown the replay of the many things that had happened to her since she was born, things that she had been previously forbidden to show me while I was human. Again, I was forced to see Jacob through her eyes, instead of through my own experience. It was difficult to be upset with him after observing him in this way. Bella on the other hand, had just earned herself another check in the negative column; Seth had neglected to tell me about how she had broken his shoulder during an altercation with Jacob shortly after Bella's transformation. I gritted my teeth, trying to contain my anger.

I spent an entire hour being shown Jacob and the Cullens in detail. I was thankful for her visions, for more than one reason, but I was relieved when Jacob took her back when she got thirsty.

"Sorry about being such a jerk before," Jacob said. "I just had to make sure..."

"I understand," I interrupted. "Just don't be mad at Seth, he was only trying to support me."

"I know, and I see that now. He was right, and I'll tell him that when I talk to him later," Jacob said.

"Please do, I don't want to be the cause of any trouble," I said.

Jacob just smiled, and headed back toward the house. I could see that Rosalie was waiting for Nessie with a cup of blood in her hands. Yeah, definitely blood, a very strong scent of blood. So strong that I felt my mouth begin to water and my throat immediately began to burn; it was obviously human blood. I was able to stop breathing long enough for them to disappear back into the house; maybe it wasn't a good idea for me to be around humans any time soon.

I then caught a glimpse of some activity happening down along the river, so I wandered off to investigate. It was Bella and Edward, along with Kate; they were helping Bella practice using her shielding ability; Bella was trying to shield Edward from Kate's shock technique. I realized this would be an opportunity for me to get some practice in myself. Well, not so much practice, but experimentation.

I watched for a few minutes, trying to appear naïve about what was going on, and then I made my move.

"I'm sorry, I hate to interrupt," I said.

All three of them turned toward me, as did those who were watching.

"I am still not exactly sure what my abilities are, some seem to think they are similar to Bella's. If that is true, do you mind if I try something, it'll only take a moment," I said.

"Sure," Kate grinned, and then stretched her hand out toward me.

"No, not like that," I said, understanding what she was attempting. "I'm going to stand behind Bella first, and see if I can transmit my shield around the three of us, if that doesn't work, we can try other ways later."

Edward and Bella looked at me curiously, while Kate just shrugged. "If that's what you want, go for it," she said.

I positioned myself behind Bella, and prepared to put my hand against her back. "Don't use your shield Bella, let me try mine," I said to her.

Her reaction was expectedly cold, especially at the thought of me touching her; I wanted to reassure her that the feeling was mutual, but the touching was necessary.

"Lightly Kate, I don't know if I can even do any exterior shielding," I lied, knowing that I had no intension of shielding anyone.

"Ok, if that's what you want," Kate agreed.

When Kate touched Edward, his body twitched in reaction to the shock, but her touch of him sent the familiar jolt through my body, I tried not to smile with my success.

"Well, that answers that question, I guess it's back to the drawing board," I shrugged.

"Giving up so easily?" Edward asked, confusion on his face.

"How are you supposed to help us if you don't even _try_," Bella demanded, glaring at me.

"Excuse me for wanting to take it a bit easy on my first day as a newborn vampire," I snarled. "I guess you've forgotten what your first day was like."

Bella jumped back at my hostility, and then bent into a low crouch defensively. Edward intervened.

"Calm down you two, this doesn't help anything," he soothed. "Brady, I certainly don't expect you to force yourself into this before your ready. Even though you said you wanted to become a vampire to help us fight, I'm not going to put any pressure on you to do that."

Bella huffed at his words, then stood up and disappeared off toward the house.

"Don't worry Edward, I'm not going to let any of you down," I said, smiling for reasons yet unknown to him.

"Honestly, I would prefer that you leave here, getting as far away from us as possible," he said.

Both Kate and I stared at him incredulously.

"I just mean that, I think that you are too valuable to the world to risk throwing your life away. There is something about you that defies logic, and I don't want the world to lose that," he said. His thoughts shifted to the images from Alice's vision.

"Like I said, don't worry, I'll think of some way to surprise them," I said, putting my hand on Kate's arm and smiling as her shock had no effect.

They both looked at each other in sudden surprise; I simply smiled and walked away.


	14. Chapter 14

9

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 12**

_Secrets_

As I walked away from Kate and Edward, I caught a look of curiosity and confusion from little Maggie. I just winked at her and put my finger to my lips. She shrugged, smiled and turned back toward her coven.

I hoped she wouldn't ask any questions, I certainly didn't expect to have a vampire around that could sense honesty; her skill was one that I certainly wouldn't need, the ability to read minds was enough to know whether or not someone was telling the truth.

That night I got into an intense discussion about politics with the Romanians, the intensity seemed to drive poor Alistair even battier. Benjamin spent most of the night staring at me, his thoughts full of lurid and extremely vivid images, definitely things not fit for mainstream publication.

The next day, which seems odd to say because it felt more like the previous day had never ended. It was bizarre not sleeping, not even feeling the least bit tired at night. I was still trying to come to terms with all of that when Seth bounded into the room, stirring me from the introspection.

"Hey sexy," I said without thinking, "you're up early," trying to distract him from my comment.

He just smiled at me excitedly, not alarmed by my comment. "Hey there...what was that you just called me—oh yeah—sexy." His smile became impish.

"If you say so," I said, shaking my head. "So have you and Jacob resolved your differences?"

"Oh yeah, we're fine now—now that he realizes _I_ was right," Seth said, trying his best to hold back a mock laugh.

"I'm glad that things are ok again, I don't want you getting into trouble because of me," I said. "I have enough things to deal with; I don't need that on my conscience too."

"Don't worry about it; I can take care of myself. This wasn't just about you remember, it really bothered me that Jake didn't seem to trust me," he said. His hands were beginning to tremble as he remembered the previous day's events.

"Calm down Seth, if you keep this up, the Cullens will bar you from the house," I warned.

Seth sighed. "Yeah... calm." He then inhaled deeply, and slowly let the breath out.

Benjamin was still staring at me from across the room; his thoughts were tinged with jealousy now. I laughed.

"What's so funny?" Seth asked.

"I was just thinking about how strange the interactions are between all of the people in this household, and how we're all interconnected somehow. It is, quite bizarre, to say the least." My thoughts shifted to Bella and how much she hates me, how much Edward likes me, how much Jacob was entwined with the Cullens given their past, and how I was becoming so entwined with the Cullens and Seth. A vampire and a werewolf, _what_ was I thinking? I realized at that moment that I was definitely not headed for a happily-ever-after anymore.

"Anyway, I just wanted to stop by for a few minutes, Jake has me on patrol down at La Push today," Seth said. "I'll stop back when I can; I'm just not sure when that will be. I frowned.

"I know, it sucks, but you need time to yourself anyway, to get ready for the Volturi," Seth said. "Speaking of, have you figured anything out, like how you're going to save _me_?" He was smiling at me sarcastically now.

"Sorry Seth, the world doesn't revolve around you," I said, while affirming to myself that, no, the entire world didn't revolve around him, just me. "I haven't figured anything out yet, but I haven't had much time to try either," I continued.

"That's what I mean, you need time to yourself," Seth said, and then shot a look over at Benjamin. It was obvious now that Seth was quite aware of Benjamin's interest in me.

Benjamin finally looked away, turning his attention to Tia.

When Seth left, I began to realize that there wasn't much time left before the Volturi would arrive, maybe a couple of days at the most. I had come to understand what my vampire ability was, but I still hadn't had much opportunity to practice with the various aspects of it. I had to work fast, yet, I also had to be discreet about it.

Reluctantly, I accepted the painful realization that I was going to need Bella's help. I had been piecing together a plan throughout the night, but much of that was dependent on Bella's cooperation. That wouldn't be easy, considering how we felt about each other, but surely she would do it to increase the odds of saving her family. If not for that, then maybe she would be willing to do it to protect her own secret. Blackmail if I had to, my plan was _that_ important.

As I was about to head out the door, I was cornered by Carlisle, who insisted that I tell him everything, every detail, about my transformation. I obliged him, I owed him that much at least, although my answers were extremely edited; that conversation unexpectedly led down another path.

"I know you've only been a part of this family for one day now, but there is something I want to talk to you about," Carlisle said in a serious tone.

"Sure, what is it?" I asked. I could see what was coming, by it still caught me off guard.

He reached out and put his hands on my shoulders. "I know that we barely know each other, but I already have come to think of you as a son. Therefore it is only right, well, that is, I was wondering if you would be willing to accept the Cullen name, if you would permit me to adopt you, like I have done for the others."

My mind went completely blank, I felt this sudden spiraling of thoughts, and it caused me to feel dizzy.

"Are you alright?" Carlisle asked.

"You just caught me by surprise," I said. "I don't know how to answer that right now, I'll have to think about it."

"That's understandable. Even if you decide not to accept my name, I will always consider you a son, and will always welcome you into this family and all that that offers," he said.

His voice was nonchalant, but his thoughts were much more direct. He was offering me full access to everything, houses, money, connections, everything they had.

"Thank you Carlisle," I said. "It's not that I don't want to take the Cullen name, it's just that my last name is the only connection I still have to my human parents. Since they died, that has been the one constant that always reminds me of them."

Carlisle smiled. "Then you should keep their name, because they were the ones who raised you to become the man you are, not me. It makes much more sense for you to keep your name, to honor them."

"Maybe we can see about doing both, I think the name Brady Cullen-Dawn sounds good," I said. "What do you think?"

"I think it sounds perfect," Carlisle said, his expression thoughtful.

It took me awhile to get my thoughts back in order after that; I was feeling both honored and sick to my stomach. I certainly never expected this from Carlisle, and knowing that I had to lie to all of them made me feel even sicker. I knew it was for the right reasons, and I knew they would forgive me for it later- that is, if everything I was planning worked out. Even so, I still felt awful about lying.

I escaped over the river and made my way upstream a few miles. I then found this immensely tall pine tree that was overlooking a valley where the river flowed through. I climbed to the very top and relaxed back onto a sturdy limb. There was a slight breeze, which made the trees below sway and dance in perfect rhythm. For the longest time I sat mesmerized by the beautiful scenery, it was like nothing I had ever seen before. I had been to many parks, spent a lot of time in the forest, but none of those experiences could compare to this.

I then began to concentrate, focusing my mind. Slowly the wind began to mirror my thoughts, swirling and shifting, creating multiple vortexes, causing the leaves to lift into the air. The river developed spinning whirlpools, and jetting geysers erupted up from them. The wind sliced through the geysers, carrying the water droplets across the river like bullets, riddling several trees with tiny holes. I smiled.

Eventually I made my way back home, knowing that I had to talk to Bella, if I could get her away from Edward that is. That would be the problem since she was so obsessed with him; she couldn't stand being away from him. I had to shake my head to clear of those annoying thoughts; otherwise, I wouldn't be able to put on a good show.

As I was approaching the house, I luckily happened across another of Bella's training sessions. There were several vampires watching, so I made my way to stand beside them. Zafrina, the wild woman from the Amazon, was working with Bella, Kate and Edward. I hadn't realized that she was using her powers until I reached the group of vampires and noticed they were standing their in uncomfortable postures, their eyes staring blankly at nothing. It was at that exact time, that I felt the increasingly familiar jolt flow through my body.

Bella was trying to stretch out her shield to envelope the different vampires, thereby making them immune to Zafrina's power. She had the gift of mental illusion, she could either force images you're your head, or take your sight away completely, replacing it with complete darkness.

As they practiced, suddenly Zafrina shrieked, and immediately the blinded vampire's eyes fluttered back to normal.

Everyone was now staring at Zafrina, who looked bewildered. She was kneeled down and rocking back and forth, like she was trying to overcome an anxiety attack.

"What is it?" Kate asked, rushing to her side. The other Amazon, Senna, was already rubbing Zafrina's back trying to console her.

"I don't know," said Zafrina. "One minute I was projecting darkness out to everyone, and then suddenly I was consumed by darkness myself. I just don't understand, that has never happened to me before."

As the vampires swarmed around Zafrina to comfort her, I continued to search for a way to get Bella away from Edward.

Then an idea came to mind, but I didn't know if it would work.

"Bella," I said. "Let's go get Carlisle, maybe he can help her."

Both Bella and Edward stared at me; their minds were trying to figure out why I was asking Bella, and why I needed someone to go with me.

"Just in case, Renesmee, you know," I said, attempting to answer their questions.

"Then maybe I should go with you," Edward demanded.

"She's stronger than you, remember," I said, replying to Edward's objection.

Finally, he nodded to her, and the next instant Bella and I were headed off toward the house. Just as we got out Edward's hearing range, I spoke.

"Zafrina doesn't need Carlisle's help, she'll be fine. The reason I asked you to go with me, was because I need to talk to you alone."

Bella stopped suddenly and stared at me in irritation.

"How do you know that Zafrina will be ok?" She asked.

"That is part of what I need to talk to you about," I said cryptically. "However, everything I tell you must remain a secret from everyone, because it is of the utmost importance that this secret is kept from Edward."

Bella glared at me. "I do not keep secrets from my husband, how dare you ask me to do that."

"Well then, apparently your dealings with Mr. J. Jenks don't count then, huh?" I said sarcastically, resorting to the blackmail option.

Her mouth dropped open, a whoosh of air gushed out of her mouth.

"How...how do _you_ know about that?" She demanded.

"Then I guess this means you'd like to correct your earlier statement regarding not lying to your husband?"

"There is a difference, I'm doing that to protect my daughter," she snarled. "Now tell me how you know about that."

"The secret I'm asking you to keep, also involves protecting your daughter. In fact, it involves protecting our entire family," I said. "How I know, is part of the secret. So is _that_ worth your silence?"

She glared at me; her thoughts were filled with curiosity and contempt.

"What is this about?" She said. "How can this secret protect my entire family?"

"_Our_ family," I corrected. "I need your help, and if this works, then you'll understand how it will protect everyone."

"Fine, if this will help—our—family, then I'll help you."

I quickly explained everything to her, including my plan for the Volturi.

"That's... that's not possible," she stammered. "How can one person..."

"I don't know _how_, I just that it _is_, that's all," I said, growing annoyed at her distrusting thoughts.

"So you think you can..."

"I _know_ I can, for once you have to trust me about something. After all, the proof should be the mere fact that _I_ can read _your_ thoughts," I grumbled.

She shuttered at that realization. "But if you're wrong..."

"I'm not wrong, and even if I was, would it really make a difference? Would what I have asked you to do really cause any additional chaos if it didn't work?"

She thought for a minute, running through the plan as I had described it. "I guess not, as long as you don't do something stupid until you know _for sure_ that what you say is true."

"Honestly Bella, I already know what I say is true, just ask Zafrina," I said with a sardonic laugh.

"_You_ did that to her?" She snarled.

"Calm down Bella, she isn't hurt; she's just a bit confused by what happened. Everyone will understand afterwards, but until then, it has to remain out of Edward's thoughts; that is the _only_ way to keep it from Aro. You know that better than I do. If Aro were to learn my secret, then he could easily thwart my plan, which would put everyone in danger again."

"I said I would help you, I just hate lying to people."

"I agree, do you think it makes me feel good to start out like this, with Carlisle, Edward and everyone welcoming me into the family with open arms. It makes me feel horrible, but feeling horrible is the price I'm prepared to pay for saving their lives."

Bella nodded.

"Now let's hurry and get Carlisle, I'm sure everyone is wondering why we're not back yet," I said.

Bella nodded once more, and then we were sprinting toward the house.

When we returned to Zafrina with Carlisle, Edward immediately began questioning us about the delay.

"Sorry Edward, but I needed to hash some things out with Bella, so we stopped and talked along the way," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"You what? Of all times for a chat, when you were supposed to be going for help," Edward growled.

"Clearly Zafrina was not hurt, we are all under a lot of stress, I was sure she just overexerted herself. However, part of the stress around here has been the antagonism between Bella and me, so I felt that it necessary to discuss that. Yes, right then and there, without you or anyone else around. This was between her and I, and that's how it had to be resolved," I said sharply.

"He is right, Edward. I am fine; I must have just tried to do too much. It is very strange though, never had that happen before. Stress… maybe," Zafrina said, trailing off in thought. Bella glared at me.

"Yes Edward, she is completely fine, I don't believe there is anything to worry about," Carlisle added.

"Still," Edward said, moving his face closer to mine. "You could have chosen a better time for your discussion."

"I know Edward, he could have just waited until later to ask to speak with me privately, but he insisted we talk right then while on the way to get Carlisle," Bella chimed.

I bowed my head, trying to appear shameful. "I'm sorry, if I had thought that she was in any danger..."

"Edward, don't be too hard on him, remember he is only a day old, I'm sure his thoughts aren't easy to control," Carlisle said, putting his arm around my shoulder.

I heard Bella's thoughts- "_Too much thinking is more like it."_

"Next time, stay focused, ok," Edward said calmly, lifting my head up. Bella suddenly glared at me again, she was watching another opportunity for putting distance between Edward and me, completely evaporate.

"I'm sorry, I was stupid, I just wanted to work things out with Bella so that our family wouldn't suffer," I said sheepishly. I should have been an actor; I was definitely delivering an Oscar winning performance.

Honestly, I still wanted to return to Bella the broken shoulder she had given Seth. This temporary alliance wouldn't last beyond the Volturi situation; she and I both knew that. The spiteful woman hated me because I was stealing her thunder, I was taking away the attention she craved, and even worse, I was gaining Edward's attention and affection. I was better at being a newborn vampire, and now, she knew that my abilities were vastly superior to hers as well. I would be surprised if she followed through with the plan, I wondered if maybe her ego and jealousies would get the best of her.

As for me, I resented her for resenting me. I hated her contemptuous attitude, and her psychotic obsession with Edward's looks. How could _that_ even be considered love? She was constantly trying to come up with something to cause Edward to hate me, I was fully aware of their intense discussions over me after all. On top of that, how she attacked Jacob for something he had no control over, his imprinting with Renesmee, and ended up breaking Seth's shoulder in the process.

All of this was adding even more fuel to my desire to succeed with my plan. Bella now understood that if I succeeded, her family would be saved, but "I" would be the hero. Her thoughts were constantly shifting from the desire for everyone to survive, to wanting to see me fail in front of everyone. She still wasn't completely convinced that what I had told her was true; the fact was, she just didn't want to believe that there was any possible way that it could be true.


	15. Chapter 15

7

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 13**

_Preparations_

Later that night, Carlisle showed me my new bedroom. Of course, it was completely decked out in expensive furnishings. I wasn't sure that I had ever mentioned the fact that I loved black furniture, but this room was full of everything black.

There was a huge black-framed bed with four large and ornately carved pillars, along with a matching dresser, which sat along the far wall. Then there was a large black desk with a matching black leather desk chair; a black laptop was sitting on the desk. There was also another black leather chair in the corner, along side a black leather loveseat. The curtains and bed sheets were bright white with black designs; the designs reminded me of Japanese artwork.

Strangely, there was also a sliding-glass patio door, but there was no patio attached. Carlisle must have seen my confused expression.

"As with all of the rooms here, we like to have freedom of movement. If you want to leave the house, you don't need to go all the way to the front door." He smiled, reading the understanding on my face.

"That makes sense, after all, it's not like we would ever wander down to the refrigerator for a midnight snack," I said, my face pulling into a grin.

"Exactly," he agreed.

I then looked out of the patio door and was stunned by the view. It was overlooking the river, huge trees were lined at such precise locations, they must have been designed that way, probably planted by the Cullens almost a century ago. As I admired the landscape, I noticed that I could see the hill where my favorite tree was located; the tree where I knew I'd be spending a lot of time, the place where I could go to clear my mind and be alone.

"I hope you like the décor; Esme did a bit of shopping while you were going through the transformation. She thought you might like it, she had talked to Seth about some of the things you liked, and this is what she came up with," Carlisle said.

"It's perfect. Strange though, I don't remember hearing that conversation," I said.

Carlisle looked at me strangely. "I suppose you wouldn't have heard it, she actually talked to him when he had stepped out to talk to Charlie."

Damn, I almost slipped up. Of course, I wouldn't have _audibly_ heard the conversation, but I didn't recall it mentally either. This is exactly why I hated keeping secrets; there was always an opportunity to accidentally blab without thinking.

"Oh that explains it then, I guess she must have ordered it special delivery to get everything here so quickly," I said, redirecting the subject.

He laughed, "That's Esme for you, she can work miracles when there is a deadline."

"She didn't happen to do any clothes shopping did she? I still have all of my stuff over at Charlie's."

"It's funny, if Alice was here, your closet would have been completely stocked, but your furniture would be lacking. That's Alice for you; she has her own set of priorities," Carlisle's voice trailed off.

Thankfully, Seth had explained about Alice and Jasper's mysterious disappearance. He said they disappeared after Alice had the vision of the Volturi, the Cullens believed she left because she didn't see any chance for victory. Seth wasn't sure about that, he didn't think Alice would abandon her family like that just to save herself; he felt that she and Jasper must be working on some secret plan or something.

"From what I know about Alice, I'm sure she has some plan in action," I said.

Carlisle smiled. "Yes, I'm sure you're right, I just wish we had some clue of what it was."

"Sometimes the best laid plans are those that can't be shared until the time comes," I said as I wondered toward the closet.

When I opened the door, I noticed a ton of different clothes spread out orderly throughout the immense room. It seemed there were clothes for all occasions and styles, thankfully many t-shirts and jeans. I turned back toward Carlisle in surprise.

"I never said we didn't stock the closet, I just said it would have been Alice's first priority, and I dare say, you would have been frightened by what you found. Esme tends to be more practical, besides, it was actually Edward who did most of the clothes shopping. He knows the websites that Alice uses, and from a quick peak at your clothes at Charlie's, he had a good idea of what you like. Although, I think in Alice's honor, he also bought a few things that he thought _she_ would approve of too."

"I don't know what to say Carlisle, this is just so..."

"You don't need to say anything," he interjected, "this is what it's like to be a Cullen, so get used to it." He laughed, and then smiled.

"Thank you," I said. "I really need to go thank Esme and Edward too."

"You can do that later, for now, just relax and settle into your new space."

He then left the room and closed the door. I looked around again and caught sight of another area of the room; it was a hidden nook. Back there I found a complete stereo system, along with a ton of CD's; obviously, this was Edward's work too. I just shook my head. Only Edward would think music, while I was more into DVD's. I looked around again, where was my big LCD TV and movie collection. If I'm going to be pampered, I might as well have it all, right?

As I turned back toward the closet, I noticed a small remote that was sitting by the laptop. I picked it up, and then hit the ON button. Suddenly down from the ceiling a large flat-panel TV slowly dropped. I then eyed the fancy dresser, and sure enough, the middle section contained a DVD player, VCR, and DVR. Yep, it looks like they thought of everything.

I then walked into the bathroom and looked around, I laughed when I realized how little use this room would actually see. Vampires didn't need to use the bathroom, we didn't even need to bathe anymore, we just never got dirty, in the human sense anyway. As I turned to leave, I found myself sad about not taking a shower anymore. Then I got a crazy idea, and after a quick selection of new clothing, I jumped into the shower.

I always loved taking a shower, just feeling the warm water pouring over me was always so relaxing. Every morning I would use up the entire hot water supply, I could never take a quick shower. This time however, the feeling felt completely different. The water flowing over me felt odd, unnatural, and washing my hair felt even stranger. My hair was already squeaky clean before I applied shampoo, and washing my skin with soap looked like mixing oil and water… the water and soap just rolled off of me. I sighed. The shower was completely pointless; even the old feeling of relaxation was gone.

As I stepped out of the shower, I suddenly came face to face with another realization, my own appearance. Up until that point, I had never seen myself since the transformation. I was never one for staring at myself in the mirror, so it never occurred to me; I was now totally stunned. While I had always considered myself fairly average looking, the person staring back at me now, was far from average. My complexion was perfect, no blemishes, nothing. My pale skin was smooth and full of radiance; my face was completely smooth, even though I hadn't shaved in days. The few scars that I did have were completely gone, including the small tattoo that I had gotten when I was sixteen. Apparently, my transformation must have completely dissolved the tattoo's ink. So much for my parent's, "Now you're stuck with that stupid thing forever" complaint.

Then I zeroed in on my eyes; they were demonic looking, glowing bright blood red. I suddenly thought of Seth, seeing me with these freaky eyes, how horribly unattractive. My previous blue human eyes were much more soulful, these red eyes were just… frightening. I finally had to turn away; I suddenly wanted to smash the image I saw. Everything else molded to perfection, except for the extremely detracting demonic eyes.

I turned my attention back to the shower experience. So ok, while the shower itself was pointless, the plus side was, with just a few whips of my head, my hair was dry and settled perfectly into place without styling. At least there was that, my new body seemed always eager to look perfect—except for the eyes. A spontaneous hiss erupted through my teeth.

In a flash I was out of my room, I stopped when I reached the landing overlooking the living room.

"Edward, how long am I going to have these freaky red eyes?" I shouted.

I was suddenly greeted by a dozen pair of glowing crimson eyes.

"Did you take a shower?" Emmett said sarcastically.

I glared at him.

"How long, Edward?" I asked again bitterly.

"Why did you take a shower?" Emmett prodded. "You weren't even dirty."

I ignored him; I was too busy glaring at Edward.

"A few months, it takes awhile for the animal blood to dilute the color," Edward said. I didn't care for his smirk.

"I have to walk around for months looking like a demonic freak?" I shrieked.

I was met again by a dozen pairs of glowing, and suddenly annoyed, crimson eyes.

"No offense," I added, trying to smile, although I'm sure it looked more like a snarl.

"No seriously, why did you take a shower?" Emmett prodded again.

I sighed. "Because I wanted to, ok," I growled.

Then the entire room burst into laughter. Even I couldn't maintain my annoyance anymore; I just shook my head and smiled. I realized at that point how silly I must seem to everyone, especially to the outsiders; to them the red eyes were normal.

Over the next couple of days, I spent nights studying martial arts training manuals, along with other books on warfare and tactics. If things didn't go according to plan, I wanted to have something to fall back upon.

During the day, I was either with Seth when he wasn't in La Push, or I was deep in the forest alone. It was annoying that I couldn't go down to La Push to see Seth, but I had been given strict boundaries by Carlisle, I had to stick to the forest and was not to go anywhere near humans until it had been proven safe for me to do so. It irked me to have limitations put on my freedom, but I understood their concern. However, if Bella didn't have any problems, than surely I wouldn't either. I hated the thought that maybe she had something over me.

Because of my constant disappearances, a few members of our group took issue with me not trying to practice my shielding ability. Edward would always tell them that he never planned for me to fight with them anyway. Most of them began to develop a negative attitude toward me, because they saw Bella working so hard to learn to fight, and all I did was wander off on my own. A couple of them thought that maybe I was planning to join the Volturi, especially after my vocal discussions with the Romanians. Little did any of them know that I was constantly honing my ability, even when I appeared to be just standing still. That's all I did, when I wasn't with Seth, I was practicing.

We all knew that the Volturi would be arriving soon, especially when the weather turned colder. Edward was constantly trying to match the weather with the vision he saw through Alice. The wolves were also increasingly jittery; it was harder to spend time with Seth because he was so focused on preparing for battle.

Bella had concluded her business with Mr. Jenks. Afterwards, she became increasingly pessimistic about how the fight would turn out, putting more stock in her assessment of Alice's motives, instead of trusting me and what I had told her. I tried to stay out of her head for the most part; it was a very twisted place to be. If she wasn't mourning what she hadn't even lost yet, she was obsessing over Edward's looks and preoccupied by her own lust. If I would have had to hear, "focus Bella" from Edward one more time, I think I'd have thrown up.

One morning as I was wandering off to the forest, I encountered another of Bella's practice sessions.

"Don't you think you should be preparing yourself too?" Kate hissed.

I turned to look at her, and then I smiled. "I'm not worried about it; I'm as prepared as I'm ever going to be."

"I haven't seen you lift a finger to..." Kate snarled, before I interrupted.

"Exactly, you haven't _seen_ anything," I added.

Katie suddenly shot a confused glance at Edward, who in turn looked to Bella, who simply shrugged her shoulders. Without another word, I continued on, disappearing silently into the forest.

I would be glad when this was over; I was tired of the secrecy and games. I _was_ prepared; I had run through several scenarios in my head, preparing for every possibility. I spent a lot of time practicing multiple situations every day, planning my action, their reaction, like a 3D chess match. However, none of this would have been necessary if I knew for sure that my original plan would work. I was now training for the possibility that it wouldn't, I was trying to be thorough.

For two days, Carlisle, Edward, Bella, Jacob and Renesmee stayed out in tents on the field where Alice had seen the Volturi appear. I knew the time had arrived when I saw the Alice's vision matched with the current morning scene in Edward's mind, I quickly made my way to the field; it was showtime.

When I arrived, I saw Edward and Carlisle exchange glances; they were wondering whether or not to send me away, to protect me.

"I'm not sure what you two are considering, but if it's about me staying out of this, you can forget it," I said.

"We just don't want" Carlisle began to say.

"Yeah, I know, but even if I'm not strong, I can still add another body to the numbers. _Any_ addition has to help increase our odds that the Volturi will hesitate," I interrupted.

Edward shrugged and Carlisle sighed.

"Fine, then just stand off to the back," Carlisle said.

"Um, no, I'm going to stand beside Bella, after all, two shields are better than one," I said.

"What do you mean?" Edward asked curiously. "Have you figured something out about your shield?"

Suddenly everyone around us was all ears.

"I'm not sure yet, but I've been practicing, and I think I might be able to project my shield enough to protect a few people. However, I won't know until I'm put in the position of using it," I lied.

"See, if you had only been practicing with us, you would know what you could do," Kate complained.

I smiled and winked at her, causing her to scowl furiously.

"No worries," I said. "You'll all just have to trust me on this."

Most of the vampires were not in the mood for trust in an unknown quantity at the moment; Amun, the Romanians, the Amazons, the Nomads, and the Denali clan all just shook their head skeptically. However, Benjamin and Tia smiled and nodded, as did Edward, Carlisle and the rest of the Cullens, even Bella. Maggie and the Irish coven also smiled and nodded. At least I had _some_ supporters.

I knew that Seth was nearby; I could sense all the pack's thoughts, which was extremely easy with linked minds. I could tell that they were going to follow the advice I had given Seth before my transformation, hopefully that would be enough of a shock to stop the Volturi. When the pack finally made their presence known, I would be sure to keep track of Seth, no matter what; I wouldn't let my nightmare come true.

As we gathered on the field, there was no talking, only silent anticipation. Benjamin sat on the ground, a few feet to the left of Bella, while Zafrina and Senna were just ahead and to the left of Bella. Then the huge russet wolf came forward and stood to the right of Bella. I stood a few feet to his right, making myself a bit detached from the group, intentionally making myself noticeable to the Volturi, trying to appear somewhat apart from the Cullens.

When Edward suddenly stiffened and hissed, I became inundated with new thought windows, the Volturi had finally arrived. I scanned the thoughts intently, looking for useful information.


	16. Chapter 16

5

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 14**

_Fruition_

They arrived with pageantry, like an all-star marching band performing their heavily prepared routine. As they flowed from the trees, they moved in perfect synchronization, obviously from centuries of practice.

The outer groupings were in gray cloaks, which darkened inward with each grouping, until it reached the black cloaked inner group. All of their faces were shadowed by their hoods, although to me, their minds were crystal clear. I could see every plot, every ploy they were prepared to invoke. The layers upon layers of preconceived plans, points and counterpoints, reminded me a lot of my own preparations. It unsettled me a bit, was it possible that even though I was a thorough in my own planning, would they be able to find a deficiency?

As they grew closer, suddenly the gray-cloaked vampires surged outward; it reminded me of a fan opening. The progression was much slower than I had expected, annoyingly slow. The pace of arrogance, the attitude of invincibility. It made me angry, and with the sudden anger came a reddish tinged aura that enveloped my body, this was the same aura that Bella experienced when she was able to project her shield. I smiled, the anticipation growing now.

To the left I heard various mutterings, but I was not paying attention to them. My mind was too absorbed in the Volturi's thoughts and also a bit distracted by the sudden appearance of my own shield.

Then, as if to remind me of my own purpose, I began reading a sudden influx of fearful thoughts along with a sense of utter despair amongst them.

"Is that ALL they've got?" I said arrogantly. "How disappointing, I was expecting an army."

Sudden low hisses erupted beside me, but I just smiled wryly as I continued to gaze forward.

Then Edward abruptly broke into a repeat of what I had already known, "Alistair was right, the Volturi come to destroy and acquire."

He continued on to explain about how they had prepared many layers of strategy, but how upon seeing Renesmee, they were content in their original course, believing her to be an immortal child. He then stated the obvious, that they had no intentions of stopping for a discussion.

Then Jacob huffed, and suddenly all of the wolves advanced out of the forest, taking up positions on both sides of our group. Thankfully, Seth was close, taking up a position between Jacob and me. There were six others spaced evenly to my right, while eight others took position on the other side of our group.

The sudden appearance of the wolves caused the Volturi to stop, the action was instantaneous. They now appeared like cloth-covered statues, no movement, no sound. The idea that I had given Seth had worked perfectly, the sudden appearance of the giant wolves shocked the Volturi into stopping; I now hoped the rest of my plan would work as effectively.

Just then, I caught more of Bella's annoying thoughts, pessimism about children dying and how we were going to lose. Ugh, how did Edward put up with her? I began wondering if she would still stick to our agreement, it was obvious she now felt like we couldn't win, and my threat of exposing her secret was moot. I hated having to depend on anyone, and of all people I had to depend on now, was the one I least trusted.

I was never known for my singing ability, but I was suddenly reminded of a particular song by Queen that I was sure would get everyone's attention. I then began singing the song, just loud enough that everyone on our side, and only the front grouping of Volturi, would hear.

"There's no chance for us

It's all decided for us

This world has only one sweet moment set aside for us

Who wants to live forever

Who dares to live forever

When love must die."

Abruptly Bella's mind turned bitter and furious, as did the thoughts of those around me, a sudden desire to fight filled them. This was a good sign; maybe there was hope for everyone yet.

I then caught several of the Volturi staring at me, obviously having heard my song. I quickly looked down, trying to look fearful and nervous. It was time to win another Oscar, and I knew I had to sell my act well.

I then caught the thoughts running through Aro's mind. I had quickly gotten a rundown of the who's who from the minds of the Cullens, so I knew which minds, which vampires, were my main targets.

Aro's thoughts were full of confusion and irritation, his most desired trophy, Alice, was nowhere to be seen. Aro and Caius immediately began weighing options, while Marcus was reading the strength of our ties to each other, looking for weaknesses. As his gaze reached me, I felt a jolt run through me but I acted as if nothing had happened, even though I desperately wanted to smile.

The Romanians' presence irritated them, as did the presence of those they didn't know, especially Zafrina and Senna, and the wolves. They were also shocked at being outnumbered; it was a first for them.

As I read these thoughts, Edward was giving a verbal replay to everyone. Then a decision was made for Carlisle to try to speak to them. I wasn't exactly paying attention to their verbal exchange; I was too busy deciphering their thoughts and reactions, preparing to act if necessary.

It wasn't until Edward was summoned to present himself, and his memories, to Aro, that I finally became involved.

It was when Aro asked to meet Renesmee himself, and Edward's subsequent suggestion for Bella to bring two others with her and Renesmee, that I knew my plan was about to begin, or end, depending on Bella's decision. This was the crucial part, the reason I needed her involved in my plan.

With a heavy sigh, and a moment of hesitation as she glanced at Emmett, she said, "Jacob, Brady."

We both began walking forward; all eyes were suddenly looking at me in total shock and surprise. Emmett's expression was initially one of shock, but quickly turned to irritation at being left behind. As we progressed forward, I could hear the murmurs about Bella's sanity and the thoughts of wondering why she had chosen me.

I could see as we approached, that even Edward was dismayed, although his thoughts were more of concern for me than wondering about what I could do to contribute.

I continued my appearance of being sheepish and fearful, acting very much like Renata, the anxiety-stricken shield that was protecting Aro. The entire Volturi guard was also curious as to why Bella had chosen me over those who appeared much more powerful. They began to wonder if maybe I had some secret ability that was much stronger than the others.

When we stopped, Demetri used his tracking ability to scan me, something he routinely did to those he met, in case he ever needed to track them in the future. As he scanned me, I felt the jolt shoot through me. Like before, it was difficult to keep from smiling. However, I maintained my composure, and nervously avoided making eye contact. Both Felix and Demetri smiled at my apparent weakness and frightened demeanor.

Felix greeted Bella and offered some pleasantries, obvious arrogance oozed out of his words. Aro also greeted Bella, while everyone ignored Jacob and me as if we weren't even there.

It was when Bella presented Renesmee to Aro, that I made a subtle and hopefully nervous looking gesture. I put my hand on Bella's shoulder, trying to make it look like I was either trying to comfort her or comfort myself. Initially both Felix and Demetri flinched slightly in reaction, wondering if I was preparing some form of attack, but when they saw my demeanor, they bought into my ruse.

As soon as Aro touched Renesmee, I received two jolts through my body, this time I couldn't help but smile. Felix and Demetri both looked at me curiously, noticing the sudden change in my attitude. I dropped my hand from Bella and stepped backwards slightly, still smiling, this time looking fully into the red eyes of the vampires in front of me.

Both of the vampires were now replaying everything in their heads, trying to catch something they missed that would have caused the change in me, but they found nothing. Felix then gave Demetri a small shrug, which Aro seemed to notice as well.

His attention then suddenly turned to me, and I greeted him with a bright smile, showing no fear or hesitation anymore. I expected Aro to address me; instead, he turned his attention to the wolves. Apparently, he was content in what he had seen in Edward's memories, and just chalked my new attitude up to newborn arrogance.

After his attempts at getting the wolves to become his guard dogs were quickly rebuffed, Aro dismissed us in order to confer with his brothers about Renesmee.

Our group began to quickly back away. Jacob, still annoyed at Aro's arrogant suggestion, was more hesitant to retreat back to the safety of numbers. Even as the rest of the Volturi guard moved forward to join Aro, Jacob was still determined to fight. Thankfully, Renesmee had grabbed his tail and was pulling him along like she was holding a leash. I was annoyed at Jacob though, I really didn't need any complications now that things were working so perfectly.

When we were half-way back to our group, I stopped. Immediately the others stopped too, all turning to around to look at me.

I smiled at Bella and said, "Thank you; I've gotten what I needed; now it's my turn."

Edward glanced at Bella, and then turned to me, "What are you talking about? We need to get back..."

"Sorry Edward, I have other plans. Bella knows what's going on, you'll just have to trust me on this," I interrupted. "I haven't been honest with you, but I've had my reasons, of which you, and the Volturi, are about to discover."

"Brady, I'm not going to let you..." Edward started to hiss.

"Edward, its ok, trust him on this. He knows what he is doing, but I can't say any more right now," Bella said, and then looked toward the increasingly attentive Volturi guard.

Edward stood there hesitant; his thoughts were conflicted.

"Get going," I commanded, "you'll understand soon enough." I stood there glaring at him until he gave in with a sigh and they continued back to join the rest of our group. Seth wasn't so convinced though; he started moving toward me, but Jacob ordered him to return to position.

I then turned around to face the Volturi. I crossed my arms and smiled, showing them nothing but absolute defiance.


	17. Chapter 17

8

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 15**

_Shock and Awe_

I was now the tip of the spear, any attack by the Volturi would have to go through me. This had the Volturi minds awash in confusion and anger. Was I any type of threat? If not, what was my purpose for standing in front? While the confusion continued, it gradually began to become overtaken by the anger welling up inside them. Here was one tiny vampire, standing smugly in front of them, as if to challenge all of them at once; that mere insinuation made all of them thirst for my demise.

My position didn't go unnoticed by the three Volturi elders; Caius in particular was constantly glaring in my direction. I didn't acknowledge him in any way; I simply continued to stand with my arms crossed, staring forward, while smiling like I was aware of a something that they weren't; which in reality, was the truth.

I continuously monitored the thoughts of those around me, both in front and behind. Carlisle, Esme, Edward and Seth were particularly disturbed by my behavior, made worse by the fact that I wasn't close enough for them to protect. I wanted to shake my head in annoyance, how little faith they seemed to have in me.

Suddenly Caius erupted in argument with Aro, refusing to accept the truth about Renesmee. After some words from Aro, Caius seemed to reluctantly accept his brother's word and moved on to their next plan.

"The werewolves," he shouted in frustration.

As Aro tried to calm him down, Caius muttered, "The children of the moon have been our bitter enemies for eons. Must I remind you that we have hunted them to almost extinction in Europe and Asia; while here, Carlisle encourages a familiar relationship with them- no doubt this will lead to an attempt to overthrow us. What better to protect his twisted lifestyle."

As he continued, I looked up toward the bright gray dawn and pretended to act confused, even scratching my head. Then I shrugged as I looked toward the increasingly annoyed Volturi guard. Just then, Edward put my actions to voice, "Caius, it's the middle of the day, there is no full moon."

As Edward continued, I returned to my previous arm-crossed with arrogant smile pose, which goaded the Volturi even more.

For the next few moments Caius, Aro and Edward exchanged words over the fact that Jacob and the others weren't even werewolves, but shape-shifters.

Caius then jumped into their next plan; it was the point where I knew I had to act.

"I want to talk to the informant," Caius announced abruptly, and turned his attention toward Irina; this was the next stage of their plan.

I waited impatiently while Caius played his hand. His intention was to draw Irina's defiance, and then turn it against her, and ultimately against her sisters, antagonizing them to start the attack.

In response to Caius' questions regarding her motivations for _spying_ on the Cullens, Irina stated that it was "because the werewolves killed my friend, and the Cullens wouldn't stand aside to let me avenge him."

"So the Cullens sided with the shape-shifters against their own kind- against the friend of a friend," Caius coldly summarized.

"Excuse me," I interjected. "If I may..."

"How dare you interrupt these proceedings," Caius hissed, glaring at me once again.

"Proceedings you say, then am I to infer that this is some sort of court that I'm observing. If so, then with Carlisle's permission, I'd like to act as their official defense lawyer," I added professionally. I glanced back toward Carlisle who simply nodded, clearly confused.

"Your name young one?" Aro asked curiously.

"Brady Dawn, uh, Brady Cullen-Dawn, at your service," I dipped my head respectfully, as Aro returned the greeting.

"We don't have time for your…" Caius began to say.

"What would you like to add?" Aro asked, interrupting his annoyed brother.

"I would just like to clarify the situation a bit more, since Caius seems to have missed several key points in his summation, as well as points that Irina seems to be unaware of," I said.

"Please continue," Aro replied, drawing a furious glare from Caius.

"Thank you," I said respectfully. "First, let me point out who this _friend_ of Irina's really was. His name was Laurent, and he was in a coven with Victoria; I'm sure you all remember Victoria, she was the one who created all of the newborn vampires that ravaged Seattle last year."

This recollection caused several of the Volturi to flinch; the reminder also seemed to affect Irina.

"Laurent came down to Forks as a favor to Victoria; it appears that he was actually using his friendship with the Denali coven to gain information about the Cullens. Laurent's true purpose was to gather information, however, when he found Bella alone in the forest, his intention quickly changed to the desire to kill her. Fortunately for Bella, the wolves, er, shape-shifters arrived in time to save Bella and stopped Laurent from ever harming the Cullens again. Therefore, if it hadn't been for the shape-shifters, Laurent would have killed Edward's mate. Would that have been more acceptable to you, Caius? The fact is, Laurent was aiding another vampire who was violating the law, so in reality, the shape-shifters performed the duty that otherwise would have gone to the Volturi, and saved the soon-to-be Mrs. Edward Cullen from sure death," I concluded.

Irina gasped at learning the truth about her supposed friend Laurent. Her expression was of both shock and remorse; she now understood the gravity of her mistake.

"That is irrelevant," Caius charged.

"Relevancy, Caius? You are questioning relevancy. I find much of what I have heard here today quite irrelevant, yet, I'm willing to stand here and continue discussing the matter," I challenged.

"Irina's guilt is undeniable," Caius added brusquely.

"Don't be hasty," I snarled. "Before you attempt to convict Irina on the charge of bearing false witness against the child, I want to remind you of something."

Caius glared at me with intense anger.

"Aro saw the same thing that Irina saw, through her memories, and believed in what she saw as much as Irina did. So, unless you're prepared to also charge Aro with bearing false witness for believing her, then I think this line of _relevancy_ has ended," I said harshly. I glared back at Caius with defiance, daring him to continue; it didn't take long for him to respond.

Caius suddenly produced a carved ornate metal object from under his cloak; the movement was clearly a signal. Immediately three Volturi soldiers leaped forward, completely surrounding Irina. Her frightened shrieks could be heard, as Caius darted into the center of the melee; suddenly a shower of sparks could be seen, along with a burst of flame.

Suddenly Caius and the Volturi soldiers leapt backwards, Caius had dropped the metal object and was shaking his hand feverishly. There in the center stood Irina, looking quite shocked, but completely unharmed. The Volturi guard all gasped in shock as Caius turned his furious glare back toward me.

I sighed. "Caius, that was very rude. Irina has committed no crimes, yet you insisted on trying to execute her out of pure frustration. That's truly unacceptable, and I believe your witnesses would agree. However, for argument's sake, let us ask them as if they were the jury here."

Caius moved into a low crouch, seemingly prepared to attack me.

"Be calm brother, there is too much that is unknown at the moment," Aro chided.

"To the witnesses that came with the Volturi today, I ask you now, do you find Irina guilty of any crimes, or is she innocent?" I called out to the intently focused group that was gathered to the rear of the Volturi guard.

Several cries of "innocent" erupted from the crowd, while many others remained too frightened and confused to speak.

"There we have it, innocent. Now Irina, if you'd quickly join your sisters so we can continue discussing the matter at hand," I said, more as a statement than command.

"Wait," Caius yelled as he leapt toward Irina. Instead, he found himself behind her as she quickly vaulted away from the Volturi and returned the relieved arms of her sisters behind me.

Just then I felt a stabbing sensation against my own shield, then a jolt rocked my body. I quickly scanned the thoughts and faces of the Volturi, and then discovered it was Jane, she was trying to attack me. I smiled at her mockingly. She snarled back at me, and then assumed the same low crouch position that Caius had taken earlier, a prelude to attack.

Suddenly I felt some pressure against my shield; another jolt rocked me.

"Chelsea is trying to break our bindings," Edward said. "But she can't find them. She can't even sense us here. Brady, are you doing this?"

"Don't look at me," I replied, keeping my focus clearly toward the Volturi.

"Bella?" Edward asked.

"I am _all_ over this," Bella crowed.

Then I caught the determination in Alec's thoughts. He was intent on gaining revenge for his sister Jane by ending our defiance once and for all.

I then caught a shimmer spreading out from him; it reminded me of how the alien in the Predator movie had looked while he was invisible to the humans.

Suddenly all Volturi eyes were on me, as I would be the first to face Alec's powerful weapon. I knew from what Seth had shared, and from the memories of the Volturi themselves, that while Jane could incapacitate one person with her powerful projection of intense pain, Alec could completely take away all senses of any number of people at one time.

As the strange shimmering mist approached me, Caius looked smug, while Aro looked intensely curious; Marcus on the other hand, looked completely bored.

Just then, the wind started to whip around me, swirling through Alec's invisible mist but having no effect. Then the ground began to shake and a huge fault ripped the ground apart a few feet in front of me, but Alec's mist flowed over it. Benjamin was trying to protect me, but even his abilities couldn't thwart Alec's weapon.

When the mist hit me, another jolt struck me, and then came the taste of something like Anbesol. I had used the stuff on a bad toothache before; I never forgot the awful numbing taste. However, that was the extent of the effect it had on me. I smiled triumphantly at Alec, and then I shrugged.

"What's going on, I can't see, what's happening to me," Alec suddenly cried out in confused terror.

Then I felt another stab at me, it was Jane again.

In the next instant, Jane was on the ground shrieking and writhing in pain. The incident only lasted a few seconds, but it was enough to cause pandemonium throughout the entire Volturi line. They had never seen Alec thwarted, and they definitely had never seen precious little Jane being the one writhing in pain on the ground. The Volturi immediately crouched and were about to spring, when a command echoed through their ranks.

"Enough!" Aro yelled.

As soon as there was calm, I spoke.

"I'm sorry about that. I just thought it was very rude to attack someone without provocation," I said, directing my comments to the still recovering Alec and Jane. "I simply returned the favor, showing you both what your own abilities feel like."

Again, gasps and murmurs erupted from both sides. Behind me, my new family was relaxing, realizing that there was truly more to me than they were aware. However, they weren't the only ones who were now becoming aware of my potential. Aro was staring at me, his thoughts in motion.

"How dare you," Caius growled. "Attacking a member of the Volturi is punishable by execution!"

"If that is true, then what is the punishment for a member of the Volturi who attacks someone who is innocent?" I countered.

"You are going to…" Caius began to say, but I interrupted.

"What are you going to do Caius, are you going to sully the Volturi's reputation because of your own arrogance?" I asked. "There is nothing neither you, nor the Volturi can do to me, and in case you don't understand what I mean, let me explain my ability to you all."

Edward, Carlisle and Aro were simultaneously trying to decipher my use of the word ability, as in singular, considering that I had clearly demonstrated multiple abilities.

"Yes," I said, talking aloud to all three of them. "I spoke of a singular ability, not multiple. After all, a vampire can only have one ability, is that not true?" I directed my question to Aro.

"That has always been the rule, as far as I know," Aro responded.

"That rule is the same with me," I said. "However, my one ability gives me the power of several, making it appear that I have multiple abilities."

"I don't understand your meaning," Aro said. "Can you explain further?"

"Of course. My ability is that of duplication," I said.

Immediate gasps came from the Volturi line; they were finally understanding what they're up against.

"It has limitations though," I sighed. "However, those limitations are more of an inconvenience. The fact is, for me to duplicate someone's abilities, they either have to use their ability against me, or use it against someone that I am touching. I'm sure you can see how little of a problem that actually creates for me, after all, I easily replicated all the abilities of those who are gathered here today, without them even being aware."

"It was you," Zafrina said, suddenly realizing the reason behind her brief blindness the other day.

I turned back toward her. "Yes, that was me," I said sheepishly. "You see, I had to keep my abilities a secret from Edward, which meant keeping it from everyone that he could see the thoughts of, meaning everyone except Bella. In fact, I had to ask for Bella's help, because she was the key to gaining access to Aro's and Renata's abilities."

I turned back toward the Volturi, directing my comments to Aro once again.

"If you had seen my ability through Edward's mind, you could have easily thwarted my plan by ordering all members of your guard to avoid using their abilities against me, leaving me limited to using the abilities of those you see behind me. However, I approached Bella with my plan, which involved the prospect that, if the opportunity should arise where she was allowed to have others accompany her when she presented Renesmee to the Volturi, then I needed to be one of those she selected. I figured that Bella would never let go of Renesmee, so Aro, you would be forced to touch Renesmee while she was still in Bella's arms. I also knew that Renata would be protecting you with her shield, so all I had to do was touch Bella at the same time that you touched Renesmee, and I could duplicate both of your abilities at the same time. The plan worked perfectly, even better because Demetri was kind enough to scan me with his tracking ability," I said, turning my head to nod and smile at Demetri.

"Then you antagonized us into using our abilities against you, so you could duplicate them to use against us," Aro thought out loud.

"That was the plan, although, I had hoped I wouldn't have to fight against you. The fact is, I believe the Volturi are necessary in this world," I said.

Suddenly two groans came from behind me, the Romanians.

"If the Volturi did not exist, then there would be nothing to stop vampires who have grandiose dreams about exerting control over humans. Without the Volturi, there would be nothing to keep those lawless vampires from bringing us all into the light, so to speak. This is not something I wish for, because I believe our anonymity protects us, all of us," I concluded.

Aro smiled, Caius looked shocked, as did the rest of the Volturi guard. Marcus still looked… bored.

"Then why stand against us now?" Aro asked.

"Two reasons. The first reason is because, in this case, the Volturi are wrong and are acting inappropriately. Second, no matter what I might feel about the Volturi, my family comes first," I said, gesturing my arm backwards.

"Acting inappropriately, who are you to judge…" Caius began to hiss.

"Caius, calm yourself," Aro interrupted. "I cannot fault you for your beliefs; you seem like a very rational young man, very surprising for a newborn."

The entire Volturi guard gasped at his comment.

"I wonder though, my dear Brady, have you studied law? You seem very well-versed in oral arguments."

I laughed. "No sir, I have never studied law, although, I was briefly on my high school debate team."

Aro chuckled. "It's amazing how flawlessly you performed as your family's legal counsel."

I simply smiled; I could tell there was some pretense behind his sudden sincerity.

"I am curious about something, if you don't mind, can you explain how you managed to save Irina from Caius' impetuous action?" Aro asked inquisitively.

Caius glared first at Aro, then at me.

"Then let me tell you what I can _really_ do with the abilities that I duplicate," I said excitedly, drawing shock and awe from those opposing me.


	18. Chapter 18

7

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 16**

_War… or Peace_

"My true strength doesn't come specifically from the abilities that I duplicate, it comes from being able to combine what I've duplicated," I continued.

"That's not possible," Caius said skeptically. "There is no way that anyone could have that much power; it goes against the natural order of balance."

"Then think of me as the one chosen to bring balance back, since from what we've seen today, apparently some don't seem to mind throwing imbalance around," I chided.

"You want us to bow down to you then, treat you like you are a god?" Caius snarled.

"That thought has never crossed my mind. I only use my abilities to help and protect others; I would use them to force others to submit to my will. Besides Caius, it seems that _you_ have already taken _that_ job," I said.

"Caius, this is getting us nowhere. Please allow Brady to continue," Aro said, raising his hand to stop Caius from continuing the pointless banter.

It was apparent that Aro was hoping that I'd share something that would reveal a weakness, but that wasn't going to happen.

"As I was saying, I can combine the abilities that I duplicate, in any manner that I choose. For example, when I saved Irina; I simply protected her with Renata's shield, and then used Benjamin's ability to control fire to force the flames back toward the source."

Caius rubbed his scorched hand and glared.

"That in itself isn't an example of combining abilities, that's more of an example of using two abilities at once," I admitted. "A _true_ example of combining abilities, is how I can use Edward's mind reading skill, or rather, his ability to read the minds of several people at once along with Aro's ability to read every memory someone has ever had. This means that I can read every memory that everyone in a group has ever had, from a distance. I don't need to physically touch anyone, like Aro does."

I would have thought that I'd have gotten beyond being able to shock people, but this time even gasps came from the rear.

"In addition, I can combine Zafrina's ability to reach several minds at once with, let's say, Jane's ability. Simply put, I can cause an entire group of people to drop to the ground in agonizing pain. As you can see, the possibilities are truly endless," I concluded.

"How can you use our own powers against us?" Jane hissed. "If this is truly our own ability that you've duplicated, then surely that power wouldn't be effective against the one you duplicated it from."

"You have brought up an interesting point, and something I have tested, you can ask Zafrina who experienced it herself. Although, both you and Alec felt your own abilities used against you. For some reason, my ability seems to supersede the original," I said, adding a shrug.

"How did you use my own ability against me so quickly, my power takes time to send out, we all would have seen it coming back towards us," Alec demanded.

"Oh yeah, that was easy. I simply combined Zafrina's ability with yours, and sent it mind to mind, instead of using that slow creeping mist method of yours," I replied.

Alec growled at my words, taking offense to its implication.

"Perhaps we should return to the matter at hand," Aro said, realizing that I wasn't going to offer him any weaknesses to exploit.

"Yes, that sounds like a good idea," I agreed.

"Just to be thorough," he said, "I'd like to speak with a few of your witnesses; for procedures sake." He waved a hand, seeming to express a sense of boring formality.

I noticed Caius' expression shift back to one of anticipation, while Edward hissed behind me. I already knew what they were planning, so once again we would shift back to the prosecution and defense mode.

I waved my arm in a welcoming gesture, inviting him to question any of those who had gathered; I wanted _his_ witnesses to see that we had nothing to hide.

After questioning Amun and making a veiled threat toward Benjamin, Aro continued on to Siobhan, leader of the Irish coven. After her turn at answering Aro's questions, he shifted his attention to his own summation.

"No law was broken," Aro said. "However, does it follow then that there is no potential danger? No." He shook his head gently. "That is a completely different issue."

I had already prepared my response, but I allowed him to continue his diatribe.

"She is unique… utterly, impossibly unique. Such a waste it would be, to destroy something so beautiful and rare. Especially when we could learn so much..." He sighed, as if unwilling to go on. "But there _is_ danger, danger that simply cannot be ignored."

"Aro," I said calmly. Can you please explain the danger that you are referring to."

"For millennia, our secrecy has been more of a matter of convenience, of ease, than actual safety. This last chaotic century has given rise to weapons of such power that they could endanger even immortals. It is only now, that our status as mere myth truly serves to protect us from these frail creatures that we hunt.

"This amazing child… if only we could but know her potential- know with _absolute certainty_ that she could always remain shrouded in obscurity. However, we know nothing of what she will grow to become. Her own parents are even plagued by fears of her uncertain future. We _cannot_ know now, what her future entails." He paused, looking first at our witnesses, and then, meaningfully, at his own. His voice gave a good imitation of sounding torn by his words.

Still looking at his own witnesses, he spoke again, "Only what is currently known is safe. Only the known is tolerable. The unknown is… an exposed vulnerability."

Caius' smile widened, assuming victory.

"Yes, I'm sure that's exactly what they thought at the Salem Witch trials before they executed so many innocents," I retorted curtly. "I'm sure that's what the Romans thought, before executing Christians. I'm sure that's what the ancient tribes thought before throwing children off cliffs because of a perceived deformity on their body," I continued, beginning to pace, allowing my hands to animate my points. "The fact is, the Volturi's place in this world is to uphold the one law; the law which Aro freely admits has not been broken. I do not believe it is the Volturi's job to predict or attempt to predict the future, nor is it their place to decide whether something is a danger _before_ it actually becomes one. To state 'only the known is tolerable' goes against every law known to exist. It reeks of fear and insecurity, something that our kind should not be polluted with."

"Peace, friend," Aro smiled, his face kind, his voice as gentle as ever. "Let us not be hasty. Let us look at this from every side."

"There is no need to look at this from every side, because quite honestly, this is a matter no longer concerning the Volturi," I snapped. "You talk of her parents concern, but you do not explain what they are concerned about. Their concern is that her rapid aging will cut her life short; their concern is not that she will become some type of monster that will be unable to be concealed. The only unknown here, is her life span, and whether or not her aging will slow or stop. Therefore, her life span, whether long or short, is not a threat of exposure. You talk of 'knowing nothing of what she will become' as if she were going to turn into a monster, that implication is pure fantasy. She is growing rapidly, yes, but her form is not changing, nor do any of us believe it will- other than those here who are reaching for some malicious pretense to attack us."

"How dare you try to dictate to the Volturi," Caius snapped.

"Dictate, Caius, that's an appropriate word considering that it is the Volturi who have been dictating to the vampire race for millennia," I replied sarcastically. As Caius bared his teeth, I continued, "Now don't get me wrong, as I had stated earlier, I believe the Volturi are necessary. However, as with any organization that has reigned for a long period of time, they have a tendency to become paranoid about holding onto their own power. Caius himself stated earlier his fears of Carlisle attempting to overthrow them, along with expressing his true feelings about our, uh, vegetarian lifestyle here by referring to us as being 'twisted'. So it makes complete sense that, even after we have concluded that the child does not pose an eminent danger, that you are still seeking a way to destroy us."

"I'd like to say..." Aro began to say, but I interrupted.

"Those of us who can read minds here," I looked glanced back at Edward, then back toward the Volturi, "know the truth, although Aro, if you'd like to give your speech about how 'not everyone here has to die, and that there is a place amongst the Volturi for them', you are more then welcome. Although, I'm sure doing so now, would only show your witnesses and even your own guard, that what I've been saying all along is the truth."

Aro glared at me, his eyes furrowed, his skin looked like it was about to peel from his face.

"Let us ask our witnesses," Aro suggested. "Let us hear the thoughts before we make our decision. Tell us friends"—and he turned his back casually on us, moving a few yards toward his mass of nervous observers, who were hovering even closer now to the edge of the forest—"what do you think of all this? I can assure you the child is not what we initially feared; she is no immortal child. However, do we take the risk and let the child live? Do we put our entire world in jeopardy to preserve their family intact? Or does eager young Brady know the truth? Will you join them in a fight against our supposed sudden quest for dominion?"

The witnesses met his gaze with careful faces. One, a small black-haired woman, looked briefly at the dark blond male at her side.

"Are those our only choices?" she asked suddenly, gaze flashing back to Aro. "Agree with you, or fight against you?"

"Of course not, most charming Makenna," Aro said, appearing horrified that anyone could come to that conclusion. "You may go in peace, of course, even if you disagree with the council's decision."

Makenna looked at her mate's face again, and he nodded slightly.

"We did not come here for a fight," she paused, exhaled, then said, "We came here to witness. Our witness is that this family here is innocent. Everything that Brady claimed, we believe is the truth."

"Ah," Aro said sadly, "I'm sorry you think that way of us. Such is the nature of our work though."

"It is not what I think, but what I feel," Makenna's golden-haired mate said with a high, nervous voice. He then glanced at me. "Brady said that those who can read minds know the truth. I, too, know when I am hearing the truth, and when I am not." With frightened eyes, he moved closer to his mate, waiting for Aro's reaction.

"Do not fear us, dear Charles. No doubt Brady truly believes what he says," Aro chuckled lightly, and Charles's eyes narrowed.

This is our witness," Makenna said, "we're leaving now."

She and Charles backed away slowly, turning to run only after they were lost from view in the trees. Several other strangers began to retreat in the same fashion, quickly followed by the remaining group.

Aro turned away and with a measured pace, walked quickly back to his guard. He stopped in front of them and addressed them in a clear voice.

"We are outnumbered, dearest ones," he said. "We cannot expect outside help. Should we then leave this question undecided, just to save ourselves?"

"No, master," they whispered in synchronism.

"Is the protection of our world worth perhaps the loss of some of our numbers?"

"Yes," they breathed. "We are not afraid of death."

Aro smiled and turned to his two black-clad companions.

"Brothers," Aro said somberly, "there is much to consider here."

"Let us counsel," Caius said eagerly.

"Let us counsel," Marcus repeated in an uninterested tone.

"Excuse me," I chimed, "I have one more thing to say, something for your guard to ponder."

"Yes," Aro replied begrudgingly.

"Aro's speech just now reminded me of something else he had said earlier, although I find it more appropriate to be said here. Aro said, 'Such a waste it would be, to destroy something so beautiful'- and so I say here, it would be such a waste to destroy all of you," I said calmly, more matter-of-factly. "Aro was not correct when he stated that perhaps there would be a loss of some of your numbers, for if this becomes a battle, I will see that the entire Volturi organization ceases to exist today. So please Aro, counsel with your brothers, but counsel earnestly."

Without a glance toward Aro, I casually spun around and walked slowly back toward my family. I heard a few hisses behind me, but I paid them no heed.

"We've won, this is all over," Carlisle said excitedly. "There is no way they will fight us now."

"Nothing has been decided yet," I cautioned. "The Volturi have been left with few options, they aren't the type who will accept losing face. We need to find a way to give them the opportunity to bow out gracefully."

"Let them die," Vladimir hissed, "there time is over."

"Not if I can help it," I replied stiffly. "I know what you and your brother are thinking, and I'd be more apt to wipe you two out than the Volturi. I would never let you two return to power, not after seeing how you've reigned previously."

"Then I suppose if you destroy us _and_ the Volturi, then that would leave you the only one capable of controlling the masses," Stefan said sarcastically. "Apparently you have your own aspirations."

"I have no desire to rule over anyone, my gift will be used to help those in need, not control or dictate to others," I hissed.

"But what if…," Edward began to say.

"I'm not dealing in what if's right now Edward, I'll deal with what if's, if what if ever occurs," I said sharply. Then I walked off toward the side of our group, coming to a stop in front of Seth.

"Hey buddy," I said, running my hand down Seth's furry face. "Sorry I kept this secret from you, but I had to keep it from everyone that Edward could hear the thoughts of."

"Yes, I've been able to read your mind too," I replied in response to his thoughts. "Ever since the transformation." He stiffened slightly, wondering if he thought anything inappropriate.

"Don't worry, being in your head was quite pleasant," I said, then looked toward the Romanians, "compared to other people's heads here, yours was like Disney World."

Seth huffed a laugh, and then butted his nose against my face.

"Things aren't over yet, I'm trying to think of a peaceful way out of this," I said. "Because as bad as they seem, they are actually necessary to keep those that are even worse in check." Then I glanced again toward the Romanians, who smirked in reply.


	19. Chapter 19

8

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 17**

_Contemplations_

Just then, I suddenly caught several new windows opening in my mind, I quickly surfed through them for information.

"Yes!" Edward suddenly hissed after having surveyed the same information I was receiving.

"This is what we need to give them their out, Edward. It's up to you now, this is about _your_ daughter after all," I said, relieved.

"Aro?" Edward called, nearly shouted, undisguised victory in his voice.

Aro hesitated for a second, assessing this new mood warily before he answered. "Yes, Edward? You have something further?"

"Perhaps," Edward said pleasantly, trying to control his excitement. "First, if I could clarify the point of contention?"

"Certainly," Aro said, raising his eyebrows, nothing now but polite interest in his tone.

I knew what was coming, so I was much more relaxed than those around me. I glanced at Seth, who was looking at me inquisitively.

"What is going on?" Seth thought.

I shook my head, then simply grinned at him. "You'll find out soon enough, but unfortunately it means everyone who was looking for a fight will now be sorely disappointed."

"Aw, and we are all ready to tear into them too, this sucks," Seth thought begrudgingly.

"Sorry Seth, but even though we certainly _could_ destroy them, it is not in anyone's best interest to do so," I said, rubbing Seth's nose.

"Are you trying to distract me?" Seth thought.

"Maybe," I added cheerfully. "Is it working?"

Seth snorted. "I'm not complaining."

I chuckled slightly, and kept rubbing Seth's nose and face. I could sense that the thoughts of those around me were all preoccupied with Edward and Aro's conversation.

"The danger you foresee from my daughter- this stems entirely from our inability to guess how she will develop? This is the crux of the matter?" Edward asked.

"Yes, friend Edward," Aro agreed. "If we could but be positive, to be _sure_ that, as she grows, she will be able to stay concealed from the human world… not endanger the safety of our obscurity…" He trailed off, shrugging.

"So, if we could only know for sure," Edward suggested, "exactly what she will become, then there would be no need for a council at all?"

"If there was some way to be _absolutely_ sure," Aro agreed, "Then yes, there would be no question to debate."

"And we would part in peace, good friends once more?" Edward asked with a hint of irony.

"Of course, my young friend. Nothing would please me more."

Edward chuckled exultantly. "Then I do have something more to offer."

Aro's eyes narrowed. "She is absolutely unique; her future can only be guessed at."

"Not absolutely unique," Edward disagreed. "Rare, certainly, but not one of a kind."

Everyone was now staring at Edward in confusion.

"Why don't you join us, Alice?" Edward called loudly.

Then, we all heard the running that was coming through the forest, they were closing the distance quickly, they would arrive momentarily.

Both sides were motionless in expectation, except for me, still stroking Seth's furry face. The Volturi guard were once again scowling in fresh confusion.

"Is Alice _really_ here? What's going on with her?" Seth thought.

I sighed. "I told you before that you'd see soon enough, I don't want to spoil Edward's fun."

Just then, Alice appeared in the clearing, followed closely behind by Jasper, his eyes quickly surveying the chaotic situation in front of them. Three others soon appeared behind them, the first to appear behind Jasper was the other Amazon, Kashmir. She was a tall muscular woman with wild dark features; I had seen her before in Zafrina and Senna's thoughts.

The other two I had not seen before, whether physically or in anyone's memories. One was a slight olive-toned female vampire with log braid of black hair, which was bobbing against her back. Her deep burgundy eyes shifted nervously around the tense situation in front of her.

The last to appear was a young man… not as fast as the others, nor as graceful. Strangely, his skin was a rich dark brown and his eyes were a warm yellowish-brown color. His hair was jet black and was braided similar to the other woman, but shorter. If my mind and heart hadn't already been so consumed with Seth, I might have considered him beautiful.

As he grew closer, a new sound sent shockwaves through the watching crowd—the sound of another heartbeat, the rapid pulse echoing the tempo of exertion.

Quickly Alice appeared at Edward's side, several of my family reached out to touch her arm, seemingly in disbelief that she was actually there. No words were spoken, as Jasper and the others followed Alice through Bella's invisible shield.

For a second Jasper seemed tense, and then his posture relaxed abruptly at exactly the same time I felt a burst of electricity jolt through my body. Suddenly he spun his head in several directions until his gaze fell upon me. His thoughts were confused about where the source of the completely benign emotions were coming from, and once he found me, his eyes narrowed. My bright ruby eyes and closeness to Seth confused him, while my relaxed emotional mood caused him concern.

"It's ok Jasper," Edward said softly. "He is our new brother. It is thanks to him that we have nothing to fear from the Volturi, even if they don't accept our new witnesses."

Suddenly all eyes were on me again. Alice's stare was first blank, then confused, then irritated. As she shifted through her expressions, I was rocked by another jolt of electricity.

"Oh great, another one I can't see. No wonder I haven't been able to see the outcome of this, _he_ has been too involved in it," Alice hissed quietly.

"Yes, and I'm sure you and Jasper just gave him two more gifts," Edward surmised, having noticed my intrigued smile. "I'll explain later, but first we have to resolve the situation in front of us."

They all quickly returned their attention toward the increasingly impatient Volturi guard.

"Alice has been searching for her own witnesses these last few weeks," Edward said, directing his words toward Aro. "She does not come back without evidence to present. Alice, why don't you introduce the witnesses you've brought with you?"

"The time for witnesses has past! It is time for the council to vote!" Caius snapped.

Aro raised one finger to silence his brother, his eyes glued to Alice's face.

Alice stepped forward lightly and introduced the strangers. "This is Huilen and her nephew, Nahuel."

Caius grimaced, as did the rest of the Volturi guard, interpreting the implications of _family_ from her words.

"Speak, Huilen," Aro commanded. "Give us the evidence that you were brought here to share."

Huilen looked toward Alice nervously, and Alice nodded in encouragement. Kachiri, in a show of additional support, put her hand on Huilen's shoulder.

Then Huilen broke into an obviously well planned monologue, explaining her past along with the past of her nephew. She described how the half-vampire child was conceived and brought into this world. She finished by saying, "We have never come so far from our home, but Nahuel wished to see the other child here."

After her speech, Huilen bowed her head and moved back, partially obscuring herself from the view of the opposing force.

Aro's eyes furrowed and he pursed his lips. He then stared at the dark-skinned youth inquisitively.

I was bored. I already knew the outcome, I was very thankful to Alice for her gift. SHE wasn't able to see the outcome because of _me_, but I could now clearly see how the current situation was going to end. It left little interest for me anymore, so it was difficult for me to pay attention, although, everyone else was clearly focused on the newcomers and their story.

"I'm thirsty," I said to Seth. "Do you want to go hunt with me?"

"Are you crazy, there could still be a fight, especially if _you_ were to leave," Seth thought, a hint of concern clouding his mental reply.

I sighed. "Fine, I suppose you're right." I realized then that apparently the outcome was only guaranteed _if_ I stayed.

Seth then shifted his body sideways, almost knocking me over; his sudden playful mood was quite evident. I caught several thoughts on both sides trying to comprehend the action.

"Keep your focus," Jacob's thoughts railed through Seth's head.

I glowered at Jacob; I hated it that other people could read Seth's thoughts too. It was because of that that Seth kept his thoughts so guarded, and now that he knew I could read them too, he would be on an even greater guard.

"Damned it," I hissed.

"What, what's going on?" Seth thought, as did many of the others around me.

"Sorry, I was just having an internal thought that came out externally; my bad," I said. If my face could have turned red, it definitely would have.

Several scowls and thoughts of 'idiot' rang thought their heads, except for Seth, who never thought a single negative about me, even when I had plunged the knife into my stomach.

I grimaced at the memory, and then shifted my focus back to the conversation that was taking place in front of us.

"And you reached maturity at what age?" Aro inquired.

"About seven years after my birth, more or less, by then I was full grown," Nahuel replied.

"You have not changed since?"

Nahuel shrugged. "Not that I've noticed."

Relief at those comments shuttered through the minds of several people surrounding me, most intensely from Edward, Bella and Jacob.

As Aro continued to press Nahuel for details about his past, my mind began to wander once again. After this was all over, what would my life be like? I was a vampire now, so my life would be very different from the one I had expected as a human. I would never age, never die, life would go on and on and on for me. I had a new family now too, that was also a significant change. I also had new friends; I turned my gaze back to Seth, and exhaled in uncertainty. The future that I so badly wanted was equally as unlikely. Regardless of his occasional confusion, I still didn't feel that Seth would ever develop the same feelings for me as I had for him. So then, what else did life, or rather, eternity, have in store for me?

Just then, I was rocked out of my mental contemplations by a familiar snarling voice.

"We take care of the aberration here, and then follow it south," Caius said angrily.

I was suddenly filled with impatient irritation; I was ready for this to be over so that I could figure out where _my_ life was going. Without even thinking, I found myself suddenly appearing back in front of our group.

I didn't say a word, but my sudden appearance and furious glare caused several of the Volturi guard to recoil backwards.

Aro stared into my eyes for a long, tense moment. I was ready to throw them all to the ground in an instant, while the rest of my group rushed in and ripped them to pieces.

Suddenly Aro's expression changed, it lightened in the slightest manner. "Brother," he said softly to Caius. "There appears to be no danger. This is an unusual development, but I see no threat. These half-vampire children are much like us, it appears."

"Is that your vote then?" Caius demanded.

"It is," Aro replied.

Caius scowled, then glared at Nahuel. "And this boy's father, Joham? The immortal so found of experimenting with creating half-vampires?"

"Perhaps we _should_ speak with him," Aro agreed.

"Stop Joham if you will," Nahuel said as he appeared suddenly at my side. "But leave my sisters be. They are innocent."

"I agree," I said, looking over at Nahuel and offering a smile. "If any harm comes to your sisters, then perhaps I will have to speak to those who harmed them." My smile shifted to a glare as my eyes returned to Caius.

Aro nodded his expression wary. Then he turned back to his guard, offering them a warm smile.

"Dear ones," he called. "We do not fight today."

The guard nodded in unison and straightened out of their ready positions.

When Aro turned back toward us, his face was as benign as ever. His scheming was over, the Volturi had lost, and he knew it. However, he was extremely relieved to have been offered a way to escape the futile battle, and save face at the same time.

Caius was incensed, his thoughts filled with contemplations about revenge, he would not accept defeat as easily as Aro.

Marcus still looked… bored. Although, _his_ thoughts were much deeper than either Aro's or Caius'. He was happy that things had not come to a fight, and he graciously accepted the fact that finally Aro would no longer be able to rule over vampires as if they were his own personal chess set. I knew from Marcus's memories that there were a lot of things from his past that still haunted him today.

Without a word, the guard was disciplined again; they were in formation beginning to depart.

Aro held his hands out to us, almost appearing apologetic. Behind him, the larger part of the guard, along with Caius, Marcus and the wives were drifting away, their formation was as precise as ever. The only ones that remained with Aro were his own personal guards.

"I am so glad this could be resolved without violence," Aro said sweetly. "My friend, Carlisle—how pleased I am to call you friend again! I hope there are no hard feelings; I know you understand the strict burden that our duty places upon us."

"Leave in peace, Aro," Carlisle said curtly.

"Of course Carlisle," Aro replied. "I am sorry to have earned your displeasure, perhaps in time, you will forgive me."

"Perhaps, in time, if you prove a friend once again," Carlisle added stiffly.

Aro bowed his head, another attempt at an apology, and began drifting backwards.

"Aro, if I may have a word before you leave," I said.

"Certainly, dearest Brady," Aro said cautiously.

I moved closer to Aro, which drew a protective reaction from his guards; Aro waved them off immediately.

"I'm very glad that things were able to be resolved peacefully, I am really not a fan of violence," I said.

"Agreed," Aro replied. "I am very happy with how things turned out as well."

Offering him a sincere smile, I said, "I just wanted to mention that, if for any reason the Volturi have a problem in the future that they are unable to resolve, please feel free to contact me for help."

Aro returned my smile, his thoughts suddenly consumed with potentials. "I appreciate the offer, young Brady, but hopefully we will never been in need of your services."

I nodded in agreement.

"However, even if we are not in need of you, please don't hesitate to visit us sometime soon. Although Caius can be a bit overbearing, you needn't be concerned about him," Aro added.

"Thank you Aro, I would very much like to come to Italy for a visit."

Aro nodded his head, and I returned the gesture. Casually, he turned away, then he and his guards disappeared into the trees.

Suddenly it was very quiet.

"Is it really over?" I heard Bella ask.

I turned around to face the guarded expressions of our group.

"Yes, it's really over. Aro knew they couldn't win, so he was looking for an out in order to save face. Alice was nice enough to provide that out, so he is honestly happy with the outcome," I said.

"Of all the rotten luck," Stefan muttered in disappointment.

There was another brief moment of silence, followed by a sudden raucous of loud cheers and deafening howls.


	20. Chapter 20

9

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 18**

_Afterward_

Soon everyone was wrapping each other up in hugs; even I didn't escape from that. Apparently, I had garnered a fan club, although the only one I wanted to be hugging was on four legs at the moment.

I caught Seth's thoughts as everyone's mood lightened, and through all of the jovial clatter of the wolves' mind-link, I found his enthusiastic desire to wrap his arms around me as well. Although, his thoughts weren't exactly as enthusiastic as mine, there was still the desire, so I was content with that.

Unfortunately, it would be a few hours before those desires would be fulfilled. First, I had to endure the endless expressions of gratitude, especially from the Denali sisters, who swore their lives to me for saving Irina. Even my new family wouldn't leave me alone, especially Carlisle, who wanted to know everything about how my abilities worked, when I knew, the questions were seemingly endless. Edward was also expressive, but not as lengthy as everyone else. Although, he did hug me for what seemed like an uncomfortable length of time, in Bella's opinion anyway. She, of course, wasn't about to offer me anything more than she had already given, keeping my secret and helping me with my plan. Instead, she stayed far away from me, turning her attention to Alice.

Speaking of, Alice and I were introduced briefly during the celebration, although she still seemed a bit confused about the whole situation, but Carlisle assured her that he would explain it all later. Jasper, on the other hand, seemed very intrigued by me, by the emotions I was emitting, so he suddenly became a constant companion- or shadow- depending on how you looked at it. It wasn't like my emotions were especially happy or positive in any way, they were more—neutral. However, to Jasper, this was the perfect kind of emotion, because it offered _him_ balance.

Later, in between being bombarded by the grateful vampires, I actually had an interesting conversation with Jasper.

"Carlisle explained the situation surrounding your joining our family, but as with Bella, I don't understand how you can remain so calm, being that you are only days old; quite honestly, you confound me even more than Bella. Even after a few months, she still has moments where she has to focus intently to regain her control. Unlike you, who appears completely and utterly in control, and also blessed with such a powerful gift, I might add," Jasper said, as his thoughts were mired in deep contemplation.

"I'm not sure I can explain it to your satisfaction, Jasper. Since I was young, I have spent a lot of time working on ways of controlling my mind and emotions, after my parent's death, I was forced to focus even harder. I've studied many types of meditation and energy control, including taking a class in martial arts. I think maybe that is why I am able to be in such control; that and the fact that I made the decision to become a vampire, I voluntarily gave up my humanity," I said.

Jasper looked at me perplexed. "So do you really think that makes the difference?"

"I honestly do. If you think about it, most of the newborn vampires that you've seen, if not all, have been _forced_ into this life. Wouldn't that make you angry? Bella had time to make peace with losing her humanity, and me; I've never felt like I was meant to be a human. So I was more than eager to ditch the human side and become what I feel I was meant to be."

"I guess I've never thought of it that way, but then again, I've never had a reason to think of that. It wasn't until Bella, and now you, that even made me realize that there was any other way for a newborn to behave."

"Just remember back to what _you_ felt when you realized what you had become, and what you'd lost."

"Yes, I was angry for quite some time, although Maria did a good job of distracting me," Jasper chuckled once as he rolled through some very visual memories in his head.

"Um, yeah, I can see how _that_ would be distracting," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Oh sorry, I forgot that you can read minds, this is going to be awkward now with both you _and_ Edward around." We both laughed, although his laughter was much more of embarrassment.

Then I suddenly caught Seth's thoughts, and just as quickly, he appeared in the room. The sight of him suddenly aroused my desires, if my heart was still working, it would have jumped out of my chest.

He was wearing a tight white t-shirt, which was a little too short for him, leaving part of his rock hard stomach exposed. The shirt itself was also torn in a couple of places, exposing even more of his dark skin. He wore a pair of equally tight blue jeans, leaving little to the imagination. What made the whole scene worse was that his irresistible smile was focused solely on me.

"So much for being able to control your emotions," Jasper whispered. "What is that all about?"

"Nothing Jasper, nothing at all," I replied, not taking my focus away from Seth.

As if to explain for me, Seth suddenly scooped me up into his arms with a gigantic bear hug. He swung me around almost knocking over the glass coffee table. I was so caught up in this unexpected moment, that I wasn't able to focus on the thoughts running through his mind. Unfortunately, all too quickly, he released me and regained his composure.

"Um, remind me to save everyone more often," I chuckled, still caught up in my euphoric emotions.

The room suddenly became quiet, as Seth stared at me blankly; his thoughts were trying to decipher my meaning.

"Don't worry about it, I'm just excited to see you in your _human_ form," I said casually. I wasn't lying, and the word "excited" was almost quite literal.

"Sorry about that, I guess today has just been such an emotional rollercoaster, and you were absolutely amazing," Seth said, the words coming out in an exuberant exhale.

I couldn't help but smile a huge glowing smile. He was still gazing into my eyes; his golden brown eyes were mesmerizing.

Then suddenly I heard a cough, it was Edward, instantly Seth stepped backwards and broke off our intense reunion. He nervously tried to shove his hands into his pockets, but there wasn't any room, so he resorted to just his thumbs.

"Thanks for the compliment, but it isn't necessary. I'm just glad that everything worked out and everyone is safe," I said, still smiling.

"You're much too modest," Seth said, trying not to look at me. "You are the reason the Volturi didn't fight, you stopped them, just like you said you would. Even Edward over there is telling everyone the same thing."

He nodded toward the small gathering in the large great room, just off the parlor from where we stood. Edward was explaining the entire scenario for his captive audience. The entire Cullen family was gathered, along with the Denali clan, Huilen, Nahuel and Jacob. The Amazon's had left earlier, along with the Egyptian clan, and the Irish clan.

Although Benjamin was reluctant to leave, Amun insisted that they not linger.

"You will come to visit us won't you?" Benjamin asked.

"Of course I will," I said, "although I can't make any promises of when, there are still a lot of things in my life that I need to figure out."

"Please make it soon," Benjamin said eagerly.

I simply smiled and nodded. Although I had enjoyed Benjamin's company, his thoughts made me feel a bit uncomfortable. I probably wouldn't have minded had I felt the same way, however, I couldn't help but feel bad for Tia. Even though she was aware of his desires, she was determined to see him happy, no matter how much it hurt her. Could I be that sacrificial for Seth? The thought made me shiver.

The Irish coven left shortly after the Egyptians. I gave little Maggie a big hug and thanked her for not telling the others that I wasn't being completely honest with them.

"Even though I knew you weren't being honest, I felt that you must have a good reason. As it turned out, I was right," Maggie said, showing off her dimpled smile.

Then I overheard Siobhan's farewell to Carlisle.

"I doubt the Volturi will forgive what happened here, I'm sure they will be looking for revenge," she said.

"Actually," I interjected, "Aro won't permit any retribution against any of us."

"Well I'm sure they'll find a way to try to finish us off separately," she disagreed.

"No, that won't happen. The reason being, Aro is hoping that one day I'll voluntarily join the Volturi, so he's not about to risk upsetting me. Caius, of course, won't be happy about that, but he won't cross Aro," I said with smirk, imagining Caius spending the next few centuries grumbling to himself about not being able to exact revenge.

"Once again, it seems, you've ended up saving us all," Siobhan said, putting her hand on Carlisle's shoulder.

I shrugged. "That's why I'm here afterall, to protect the innocent." Everyone smiled, many of them hopeful that what I had said about the Volturi was true.

When they were gone, Carlisle spoke to me quietly.

"I'm proud of you, Brady; you showed great courage and leadership today. Many of us knew there was something special about you, but we really had no idea of how special."

"I certainly didn't do anything to impress anyone. I've always known that I was meant to accomplish something, even in my dreams I was always protecting people," I said. I glanced down at the ground, becoming uncomfortable with all the praise.

"There is no need to be embarrassed Brady, you deserve the credit for all of our lives," Carlisle said.

"I'd rather not think like that, it makes me sound like some type of god, which I am not," I replied. "I'm here as a servant of the one who created me, not the other way around."

Carlisle just smiled at me, then hooked my arm and dragged me back into the house. He was afraid that, if given the opportunity, I would bolt, returning only after the celebrations had calmed down. I had thought about that, but something kept me there, no not something, but someone. Although, as the hour grew late, I began to fear that he wouldn't return.

Now I found myself confronted by the fact that he _had_ returned, and was now standing here in front of me. Having just embraced me with such vigor and enthusiasm, he was now covering his thoughts with his usual mask.

"Let's go outside Seth, I can't take any more of this flattery, I'm afraid if I hear any more, it'll go to my head," I said.

Seth nodded, and followed me out the door. Ah, sweet privacy at last.

"Honestly Seth, you and the wolves deserve much of the credit, it was your appearance that stopped the Volturi in the first place," I said, sitting down under a large pine.

Seth stared down at me curiously. "It's still hard for me to believe that you are a vampire, you don't act like one, you still act very human. I've never seen a vampire just sit down like that, it's too weird."

"You're changing the subject," I said. "Besides, just because I don't _need_ to sit, doesn't mean I don't enjoy sitting. Would it surprise you to learn that I also enjoy lying in bed?"

Seth's face suddenly flushed, and then he quickly took a seat beside me, avoiding my gaze once again.

"It was _your_ plan, to have us to march out in synchronized formation. So it's hard for me to share in the credit, when you designed it all from the very beginning."

I exhaled sharply. "I'm glad that it all worked out, I was so paranoid that something was going to go wrong."

"You certainly didn't act paranoid, you took command of the field, you faced off against vampires who are thousands of years old, and you beat them at their own game."

"Seth, stop that, I don't want to be seen like that, especially by you."

"It's true, so how can I not see you like that?"

I turned to face Seth; I looked squarely into his beautiful eyes.

"You are my best friend Seth, that, and that alone, is all I want from you." That wasn't true, but if friendship was all he was willing to give, I would gladly accept it.

Seth smiled, and then rested his head back against the tree, his mind suddenly filled with memories of our brief past together.

Time seemed to lurch forward then, and all too soon, Seth returned to La Push. I was able to avoid any more praise and fanfare from my family, by using the patio door to my bedroom. For the rest of the night I lay on the bed, thinking about the future, trying to find my place in it.

The next morning, I approached Carlisle with some of the things I had thought about during the night.

"Carlisle, I wonder if you have any books or material on languages?" I asked.

"Edward and I have plenty of material on pretty much any language you can think of, but if I may ask, why the sudden interest?"

"I got thinking last night, that I need to find some sort of occupation. I don't want to live off the Cullen's money, so I wanted to find some way of making my own."

Carlisle shook his head. "You don't need to rush into anything, nor do you need to worry about money. Remember, the Cullen's money, is rightfully _your_ money now too."

"Be that as it may, I also need to find something to do with my time, you know. I'm the only single one in this house, and nights can get pretty lonely around here." I glanced down at the floor, trying not to reflect too much into that.

"Yes, I can definitely understand about that, Edward was the same way, as was I for centuries. Just don't despair, I'm sure you'll find a nice girl a lot sooner than any of us did, you are much more, uh, advanced, than we were at your age."

_"A nice girl"_ he said, I instantly wanted to hurl. Not because of the girl aspect, but because I really hated people assuming anything about me. People always like to believe that everyone is heterosexual; it's no wonder that gay people find a need to be flamboyant; it's the only way to make sure people don't assume you into a corner.

"I really could care less about that aspect, Carlisle, I want to concentrate on developing myself before I become distracted," I said coolly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply anything," he said as he motioned me to follow him. "I keep all of my books up here in my study; you're welcome to anything I have in here. I have many books on languages, although, I believe you might be more interested in Edward's collections. He has a lot of the more modern types, the ones that come with CD's for actually learning languages."

"Yes, those are the types I'm interested in, the ones that will help me learn, and learn quickly."

"Why the hurry? Do you have something in mind?" He stopped at the doorway to his study, turning to survey my face.

"I'm not very patient, and with this new photographic brain of mine, I don't foresee me studying any one language for any length of time."

"You definitely remind me a lot of Edward." He chuckled once, and then opened the door and led me in.

I was amazed by the sheer scope of the room. It had an immensely high ceiling, with dark paneled walls, which were mostly covered by bookcases. The bookcases were floor to ceiling, obviously custom designed, with a rolling ladder to reaching the highest shelves. In one corner was a large mahogany desk with an expensive looking leather chair.

"Over here you'll find the books on languages," he said as he pointed to an area near his desk. "I could point out all of the different categories of books that are here, but I think it would be more fun for you to explore on your own."

I smiled, understanding exactly what he meant. "Yes, I definitely prefer to explore on my own."

He returned the smile, and then he turned my attention to an area behind me.

"Do you recognize anyone in this picture?" he asked, pointing to an immense, ornately decorated painting.

I scrutinized the picture for a few brief seconds, and then raised an eyebrow.

"If I were to guess, I'd say that was you along with Aro, Caius and Marcus."

"You're exactly right. Now did you get that from the paining itself, or from my head?"

"I don't need telepathy to recognize that trio. I've seen every thought, every memory that they've ever had, including memories of this very painting."

"Amazing! What else did you find in their heads?"

Carlisle was suddenly in full detail obsession mode again, it was something that happened to him when his curiosity activated.

"Sorry Carlisle, but I don't kiss and tell, so to speak."

He shrugged. "I guess that's fair enough, at least I know now that you won't be telling other people about all of the thoughts that have rattled around in my head," he laughed.

"Honestly, I haven't probed your memories; I don't have a reason too. With the Volturi, it was because I needed the advantage, but I have no need to delve into the minds of those I trust."

"Thank you Brady, that means a lot." We both smiled, and then I returned my attention back to the multitude of images on the wall, putting together pieces of the past, while Carlisle explained them all in full detail.

Later that morning, I finally had the opportunity to talk to Edward about my desire to learn languages. He was quick to shuttle me off to his room where he quickly boxed up every language book that he had, insisting that I keep them as long as I wanted.

I felt oddly comfortable with Edward. It wasn't that I was attracted to him, although I did find him attractive. It wasn't because he was cool, fashionable, or extremely talented; it was because he was so similar to me; excluding those traits. We were very similar creatures on the inside, and so we just naturally connected. He was like the twin brother that I never had, which I realized would be legally true soon.

"So how are things with Seth?" Edward asked in a casual tone.

I sighed. "Complicated. I just don't know what he _really_ feels deep down; he has a way of masking over certain thoughts. It drives me crazy not knowing, but, I'm not about to risk our friendship by pushing the issue."

"That's probably best. If he is confused or isn't ready to deal with his feelings, its best not to push him."

"I'm surprised that you are so comfortable talking about this, I guess I just expect everyone to be creeped out by it."

Edward chortled. "I've been in too many people's heads to find anything creepy anymore. I've seen love through many people's minds, and I realized long ago that love is love, no matter what gender or orientation is involved."

"I'm glad. It's nice to be able to talk to someone, I've never had anyone to talk to in person about this, and the two gay guys that I've actually met, didn't have conversations on their mind."

Edward looked at me with a crazy crooked smile, and then shook his head in amusement; for once in his life, he was glad that he wasn't able to peer into someone's thoughts.


	21. Chapter 21

10

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 19**

_Deepest Abyss_

Later that day, I inadvertently started a discussion that apparently no one had yet considered.

"So Jacob, have you given much thought to what you're going to do with your immortality?" I asked.

"Huh?" Jacob responded. "What do you mean immortality? Werewolves aren't immortal."

The others who were in the room were now staring at me with confused, blank expressions.

"Well, if I understand everything correctly, the only two ways that werewolves die is from injuries sustained from battling vampires, or if they cease transforming into their wolf form. Is that correct?" I asked.

"Uh, yeah, that sounds about right, so what are you getting at?" Jacob asked, still confused.

I sighed in frustration, something I seemed to be doing a lot of lately. "I know I'm not a rocket scientist, but I'm amazed that nobody has figured this out yet." I then walked over and plopped myself down in front of Renesmee. "The reason that werewolves usually choose to stop transforming is because they want to age and die along with the one that they love. However, since apparently Renesmee will stop aging in a few years, this means that she will never age or die. Therefore, you will never have a reason to stop transforming, which translates into immortality."

Suddenly everyone's heads were shifting back and forth between each other, all finally understanding what I was saying.

"Oh great! Now we definitely will never get the smell out," Rosalie hissed. "Thanks for that revelation."

Jacob grinned at her in defiance, drawing another hiss of revulsion from her.

"Sorry," I added. "I figured you all would have figured that out by now."

"Maybe you _should_ consider rocket science," Edward added sarcastically, "becoming a linguist might be a tad bit too easy for you."

"Huh!" Jacob huffed. "I guess I never thought that far ahead, the idea of living forever seems so bizarre to me."

"It still is!" Rosalie hissed again. "The idea of having you around forever is beyond bizarre, it's torture!"

We all laughed out loud, even Rosalie couldn't help but laugh at her own outburst. Emmett put his arm around her, trying to ease her tension.

"You'll get used to me, eventually," Jacob said with a shrug. Then upon seeing her venomous expression, he added, "Or… maybe not."

Then Seth suddenly appeared in the room, he hadn't bothered to knock. Even though I was aware of his presence before he walked in, I was still stunned by his appearance. He was wearing nothing but an old pair of shredded blue jeans, no shirt, no shoes; he was the image of a contemporary Greek god. His smile brightened when he saw me, the reaction was not lost on anyone in the room.

"Shouldn't you be on patrol or something, Seth?" Jacob snorted.

"Aw c'mon Jake, there's no need for that anymore is there? The Volturi aren't coming back, and there really isn't anyone else that can threaten us anymore," Seth complained.

"We can't be too careful," Jacob added. "Maybe you should..."

"Oh give it up," I interrupted. "There isn't anything to worry about; I would know if there was. Unlike Alice, for some reason I _can_ see the future of werewolves, so I can assure you that there isn't any eminent danger."

"You can see our future?" Jacob asked, stunned.

"How is that possible?" Alice chimed in, as she entered the room. "I could never see them _or_ Renesmee."

"He probably can't, he's just trying to get Seth off the hook for patrols," Jacob added. His eyes furrowed as he stared at me for answers.

"Don't stress yourself Jacob, you'll prematurely age yourself," I barked. "As for seeing the future, I've been able to see both the wolves and Renesmee's future ever since I acquired the ability from Alice."

"But how is that possible?" Edward asked.

"My best guess, is that it is because I was acquainted with both werewolves _and_ Renesmee before my transformation. With Alice, she had never had any contact with werewolves or half-vampires before her transformation- although she had contact with both humans, having been one, and vampires, having been transformed into one. I had contact with all three before I was transformed, I think that is the reason why I can do, what Alice cannot."

"You never told me about that," Seth added. "So what do you see for my future?"

I felt several eyes suddenly focused on me, I really was beginning to hate being the center of attention.

"Here is the downside," I began. "I can only see the future of the werewolves or Renesmee a day in advance, unlike with vampires or humans, with whom I can see months or years. So unfortunately Seth, I can only tell you what you're going to be doing as far as tomorrow, which you'll be spending teaching me how to cliff dive." I then smiled and winked at the handsome jubilant Greek god in front of me.

"Cool," Seth added, returning the smile with possibly even more enthusiasm.

"Then if you have limitations, then we still need to consider patrols," Jacob grumbled.

"I don't think that will be necessary, Jacob," Edward added. "You worry too much, and I think a day's notice is more than enough for us to handle any problem. I dare say that by now, most of the vampire world is clearly aware of the hazards of challenging us."

Everyone was staring at me again, many of their thoughts returning to the confrontation.

"Ugh, you all need to stop. I'm not some superhero, so stop with those thoughts, it really makes me feel like some weirdo or something," I said as I rose to my feet and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Seth asked, taking a few steps to follow.

"_We_ are going hunting," I said, glancing back with an impish smile.

For the next six months, Seth and I were practically inseparable, much to the chagrin of Jacob who felt that Seth was shirking his werewolf duties. However, since there was no apparent danger lurking, he was powerless to stop me from monopolizing Seth's time.

Seth would frequently spend the night at the Cullens', crashing out in my bed, the bed that I never slept in. I spent the nights concentrating on learning languages; with my vampire mind, I was able to absorb languages in rapid succession. Edward helped, and because he was able to converse with me in every language imaginable, I could become solidly fluent in a particular language within a week. After a few months, I was speaking every printed language known to man, and Edward even helped me to become familiar in some obscure dialects.

During the day, Seth and I would pass the hours playing video games, watching movies, hunting, cliff diving, practicing martial arts, playing football and baseball, or occasionally, me helping him with his homework.

Sometimes we spent hours sitting up on the branches of my favorite tree, overlooking the valley below, and talking about life. I really enjoyed those times, although it could be because I had to carry Seth up to the top of the tree; he would wrap his arms around my neck and I would quickly scale the tree. I always hated it when we reached the top, knowing that he would loosen his grip as soon as we found a stable perch.

During those days together, something inside kept screaming at me to stop getting so involved; however, I couldn't stop myself. The more time we spent together, the more I fell in love with him. Even though I never saw the same emotions returned in his thoughts, I did see the confusion surface from time time, which he always quickly covered up. Maybe I was just seeing what I wanted to see, instead of facing the reality of the situation.

It was a sudden sharp vision late one night, which snapped me back to reality. Making the vision worse, was the fact that Seth was home, sleeping in his own bed for a change. For several minutes I was unable to move, I couldn't feel my body, I couldn't feel anything, I could only see the same vision over and over in my mind. My body was stuck in a confused state of being, unable to cry, unable to scream, unable to feel the beat-less heart shattering, I simply fell over sideways, my body to crashed hard against the floor. Even though I had been sitting on the floor already, the impact still caused a loud crashing sound to echo through the house.

It didn't take long for several members of the household to appear in the doorway, but by then, I had already fled through the glass doorway. The impact with the floor rocked me back to some form of bodily connection, and I mustered enough cohesive thought to flee. I didn't want to explain my state of paralysis to anyone, doing so would make me see the vision again, and seeing it again might make me believe it.

I fled to my tree, and climbed like a rocket to the top. It probably wasn't the best choice of locations, as the memories immediately began flooding every cell of my being. I couldn't cry… there was no release that would relieve the pain that I felt. I was plummeting down deeper and deeper into the abyss that my vision of reality brought. The blackness of the pit engulfed me, and my entire body seemed to shut down and turn to stone. I could no longer see, think, or hear… the only thing I could appear to do was experience the inner pain that was ripping at my core. Not since my parent's death had I experience this feeling, and even this pain seemed to take it to a new level of intensity. I wasn't able to escape this time; there was no meditation that could save me. So there I sat, through the remaining hours of the night, entrenched within my own version of purgatory.

The late morning sunlight stirred me from despair, just enough to prod me to return home, but not enough to relieve me of the crushing pain.

Whether fate was working against me, or I had made some deity unhappy, but as I walked in the front door, I was forced to confront the reality I was trying to so desperately to suppress.

Apparently, Jacob had arrived a few seconds before I had, and he was now in the middle of an announcement.

"You'll never guess what happened this morning," Jacob crowed excitedly.

"Oh spit it out dog, we're not into guessing games," Rosalie said, clearly annoyed.

"Seth imprinted!"

The words made my head spin, I felt my body sway, I had to grab the nearest wall for support.

"He was on his way here, when a passing family stopped to ask for directions. As soon as he saw her, that was it, all by chance. If he had been a little bit earlier or later, they probably would have never met," Jacob said in excitement.

"Where is she from?" Carlisle asked.

"Who is she?" Bella asked.

"Her family just moved to Forks, that's all I know so far. Oh, and her name is Elizabeth, but she prefers Liz," Jacob said.

"Where's Brady?" Edward asked intensely.

I wasn't sure how I made it across the river so quickly, but the next thing I remembered, I was reaching out to put my hand against a tree for support. Just as quickly, I was aware of Edward standing a few paces behind me.

"Are you ok?" Edward asked.

"Yeah, fine, everything's great," I said bitterly.

"You knew this was going to happen, you saw it in a vision didn't you? That's what that loud noise was last night, that is when you saw it."

I didn't reply, I couldn't.

"If you knew, then why didn't you stop it? Like Jacob said, if Seth had been delayed even for a few seconds, he would never have met her."

I tried my best to bring myself upright, although I was still unwilling to turn toward him. "I love Seth more than anything in this world, but I am not going to ruin his future. This was meant to be, and it is not up to me to take this away from him. If we were meant to be together, then he would have imprinted on me."

"Seth would have never known that he was missing anything, he would have stayed happy just being your friend."

I turned sharply and glared at Edward. "_I_ would have known! I would have known that he had the chance to experience love beyond love, and I selfishly took it away from him. That wouldn't be love. Love is when you sacrifice your own heart, in order to see the other person happy. You of all people should understand that, I recall you having gone through something similar with Bella and Jacob."

Edward looked away in discomfort. "Yes, you are right. It's just that..."

"Don't worry about me Edward, I'll be fine, I'm always fine. I'll get through this like I have everything else that I've faced. It will take time, but it seems I have plenty of that now, much more than I care to have at the moment."

"But it isn't over yet, Seth..."

"Yes I know. Seth plans to bring her over later, to introduce her to everyone."

"This will be the first human you've encountered, but he'll expect you to be there, probably more than any of us. Maybe it would be best if he waited until you've had time..."

"I'll deal with it Edward. For Seth, I'll do what I can to see that he's happy. I'm not about to make a meal out of his girlfr—" A brief sensation of nausea filled me. "I mean, the person that he's with."

Suddenly, Edward wrapped his arm around my shoulder. I fought the urge to rip it off of me, it wasn't him that I was upset with, he was only trying to help.

"We'll all be there for you, we'll help you through this," Edward said in a calming tone.

I inhaled deeply, then exhaled. "I suppose I should hunt, I wouldn't want to make a bad first impression," I said, attempting a chuckle.

"That might be a good idea, do you want some company?"

"No, I think I need a bit of time alone, I just pity whatever prey I happen upon, they're likely to be the ones to experience my frustration."

Edward smiled at me, then stepped away. In a flash, he was gone, and I found myself alone; apparently, it was something that I would need to get used to once again.

Then a song from Duran Duran suddenly came to mind, and I started to sing-

"Came in from a rainy Thursday on the avenue

Thought I heard you talking softly.

I turned on the lights, the TV and the radio

Still I can't escape the ghost of you

What has happened to it all?

Crazy, some'd say,

Where is the life that I recognize?

Gone away…

But I won't cry for yesterday, there's an ordinary world,

Somehow I have to find

And as I try to make my way, to the ordinary world

I will learn to survive.

Passion or coincidence once prompted you to say

Pride will tear us both apart

Well now prides gone out the window crossed the rooftops, run away,

Left me in the vacuum of my heart.

What is happening to me?

Crazy, some'd say,

Where is my friend when I need you most?

Gone away…"

I had to stop there, the pain in my chest was becoming all-consuming, there was no point continuing to torture myself. I abruptly shifted my focus; I needed to hunt.

I was more ferocious than I had ever been, becoming more animal than graceful vampire. I also filled myself more than I ever had, still wanting to take every precaution possible. Even in all the pain, I still put Seth's feelings before my own; I wouldn't do anything to hurt him if I could avoid it.

I returned to my room, once again through the glass door, I wasn't about to let my family see me so disheveled. As I entered the room, I was confronted by Jasper, who was apparently waiting for me. Had I been paying attention, I would have noticed his thoughts, but my mind was blocking other people's thoughts at the moment, not wanting to hear anything more about Seth's imprinting.

"I've been waiting for you, although I'm sure you already knew that," Jasper said.

"Actually I didn't, I've been lost in my own thoughts today," I added, walking passed him toward the bathroom as I slipped off my bloodied and tattered shirt. "If you don't mind, I really need to get cleaned up."

"This will only take a moment."

"What is it Jasper?" I exhaled with annoyance.

"You're in pain, a pain I've never felt before, although it is similar to how Edward felt when he left Bella that time, but your pain is somehow even worse."

"Um, yeah, thanks for telling me something that I already knew. Is that it? Is that what you came to tell me?"

"Actually, I didn't come to _tell_ you anything, I came to inquire about the reasons for your pain, I really don't understand. I would think you would be happy, with Seth finally finding..."

His sentence trailed off as he caught my furious, wounded glare.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize—I just didn't think about that—I'm sorry."

I turned away from him, trying to reassemble my thoughts once more.

"Seth doesn't know does he, he doesn't know how you feel," Jasper said softly.

"No, and he won't. The only one who knows is Edward, and now you apparently, but that's as far as it goes." It was all I could manage to say without losing it.

"I understand, this explains everything." Jasper suddenly sat down on the bed, putting his face into his hands. "I know how you feel Brady, I went through this myself a long time ago, with Peter."

My head swung reactively in his direction, caught off guard by this revelation. I had not probed any of the Cullens' memories, so this was truly a shock.

"What do you mean?"

"When I first met Peter, he was a raging newborn, but still, there was something that drew me to him. We became fast friends, even though Maria forbid friendships with the newborns we created. Over time, Maria's jealousy got the best of her, and she ordered me to destroy several of the newborns, including Peter. I couldn't kill him though; I loved him, much more than I ever loved Maria. Even though I never acted on those feelings, many times I wanted to, but I was too afraid of alienating Peter's friendship. That type of thing was not accepted back then, like it is today."

Jasper wasn't looking at me; his face was still in his hands.

"It may be more accepted today, but it still seems just as difficult," I said.

"Yes, I suppose you are right."

"So what happened with Peter and Maria?" I asked.

"Apparently, and unbeknownst to me, Peter had fallen in love with another newborn, Charlotte. It was when the time came to execute her, that Peter took her and fled. I was unable to stop them; unable or unwilling, whichever it was. The realization that Peter loved _her_, momentarily caused me to lose my ability to think or react. Had that not happened, I may have killed them both out of pure jealousy and rage… rage at them, and myself. Thankfully I had time to calm down and deal with everything, before Peter eventually returned to ask me to join them."

I saw in an instant, Jasper's thoughts and memories. The time he spent with Peter and Charlotte, the entangled relationship that they shared for a brief period. That was why Jasper left them, he realized that he couldn't share Peter, and the attempt was tearing him apart. It was during that lonely, lost period that he met Alice.

"Does Alice know about—about everything you've gone through?"

"She knows everything. It was thanks to her that I was able to put my feelings for Peter into the past, and move forward again."

There was a long silence, neither knowing how to continue.

"I guess I'll leave you to get cleaned up. Please don't be offended later when I avoid being close to you, it's nothing personal, it's just that—well—I don't care to experience those emotions again. I hope you can understand."

"I do understand, and I'm sorry Jasper, I didn't mean to bring back those memories."

"It's not your fault. I just wish that things could have worked out for you two, now that I can see the truth of the matter, I think you two would have been perfect for each other."

I nodded. "Yeah, we would have."

As Jasper left the room, I turned around and headed back to the bathroom. Stripping down, I took a nice long hot shower, the sensation reminded me of all the times Seth had touched me over the past few months. All of the hugs, carrying him up the tree, us wrestling around, there were so many things that I took for granted at the time. I know I shouldn't allow myself to think about it; I just couldn't help becoming mired down with thoughts of the things I would never experience with him again.


	22. Chapter 22

7

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 20**

_Into the Darkness_

I found myself hiding out in my bedroom, dreading the knock on the door and the thoughts that would come streaming into my head. Seth and Liz would be arriving shortly, and I had to face two big questions. Question one, was the fact that Liz would be the first human I would have contact with, how would her scent affect me? Question two, how would I handle seeing Seth with someone else? I really wasn't looking forward to discovering the answers to those questions because I knew that each of them offered their own form of pain.

When they finally arrived, I made my way downstairs before the dreaded knock could occur. I found a secluded spot against a far wall that would offer me the most shelter from inquisitive eyes. Edward was closest to me, while Jasper positioned himself farthest away. I hated causing anyone else pain, this should be mine to bear alone, which was why it made the decision much easier to make; I just had to find the appropriate time to announce it.

When the knock came, Carlisle was quick to answer the door; he them offered excited greetings that made me nauseous. Jacob was particularly excited, while the rest of my family seemed more guarded. They all seemed to sense my distress, so they weren't willing to push it. Jacob was the only one who seemed clueless, although, that could have been on purpose. I wasn't willing to scan his thoughts to check, I had enough to deal with at the moment.

When Seth appeared in the great room, he stood there holding her hand, and made the surreal announcement.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet my new girlfriend, Elizabeth," he said eagerly.

She shot him a look of annoyance, causing him to readdress us.

"Um, she prefers to be called Liz, sorry about that," he apologized to her with a squeeze of her hand. She smiled back gleefully, my stomach churned.

He continued by introducing everyone to her, she approached each one and shook their hand. There was no hesitation or fear; it was obvious that Seth hadn't told her that we were vampires.

He saved me for last, and as he introduced me as his best friend, I felt the abyss reaching up for me once again. She reached her hand out to me, and suddenly everyone around me stiffened in anxious anticipation. Her short golden blond hair glistened in the light, only outshined by the brightness of her deep green eyes. Her skin was a soft shade of pink, which contrasted starkly with Seth's dark features; much like how he and I contrasted.

Unthinkingly, I inhaled deeply, which caused me to suck in a concentrated burst of her scent. Shockingly, her smell was the least of my concerns. It was neither the overwhelming temptation that I'd feared, nor was it in any way repulsive. It was what it was, and at the moment, that's all I could process about it.

She wasn't unattractive, so I couldn't hate her for her looks; she wasn't rude, so I couldn't hate her for her personality. As much as I tried within those first few moments, I couldn't find any reason to hate her, other than the fact that she now possessed the one that I loved more than life itself. Reluctantly, I reached out and shook her hand, offering her my best Oscar-winning smile.

It was then that I made the biggest mistake of my life- I scanned her memories. Fury immediately flowed through me; I now wanted to this young girl's death more than anything else, as suddenly, through her eyes, I experienced their first meeting. The expression on his face at the very time he imprinted on her, it was an image I would never forget, it was as if he were a blind man seeing the sun for the first time. This vision was more than I could bear, I knew now that I had to get away.

I released her hand before I lost control, and returned back to my position against the wall. Seth smiled at me, oblivious to the turmoil that roiled inside.

Thankfully, Alice and Bella whisked her away with overly eager questions, giving Seth and me some privacy.

"Isn't she great?" Seth said, overenthusiastically.

"Yeah, something like that," I mumbled.

"What's wrong? You don't seem yourself."

"Don't I? How odd, maybe I'm getting sick or something."

"Ha, as if you could get sick," Seth chortled.

Then he stopped in mid-laugh when my expression didn't approve of his humor.

"What is it?" he demanded. "Are you mad at me for something?"

"Now what reason would I have to be made at you about?" I responded sarcastically.

Seth sighed, then looked over at Liz, then back at me. "You're mad about _her_ aren't you?"

I didn't respond, I could only stare down at the floor.

"This wasn't my fault, I didn't mean for this to happen, you know what it's like, you have seen our thoughts, you've seen how it is for Jacob, Quil and the others," he pleaded.

"I haven't seen your thoughts, at least not today," I corrected. "Nor do I care to."

I could tell Seth was staring at me in confusion, but I couldn't bring myself to look at him.

"I know it's not your fault Seth, that's life sometimes. What is meant to be will be."

"What is that supposed to mean? I don't know why you are so upset, it's not like anything has to change between us, if that is what you're worried about."

"Doesn't it? You said before that I have seen the thoughts of the others who have imprinted, and I _know_ how it feels. Yes Seth, things have already changed, that's just how it is."

"No, it doesn't have to be like that. The three of us can hang out; we can still spend time together."

I suddenly saw a flashback of Benjamin's thoughts, along with the memories of Jasper's experience with Peter and Charlotte. Like Jasper, I would not be able to share, which meant the decision that I had made earlier _was_ the only choice I could make now, the same decision that Jasper had made.

"Seth, haven't you ever heard that two's company and three—well—just isn't."

"You're not being fair."

"Life isn't fair, I should know," I barked.

Everyone's eyes were now focused on us. Liz was trying to understand what was going on, as were several of the others. Jacob stood to approach, however Edward cut him off.

Seth stepped forward to put his hand on my shoulder, but I reacted much faster, pushing passed him and heading for the door.

I should never have slowed, because when I did, Seth was able to grab me by the shirt and spin me around to face him.

"Where are you going? We need to talk this out," Seth said, tears were forming in his eyes.

"I'm leaving Seth," I snapped.

"Can we talk tomorrow then? Please."

"I mean, I am leaving, I'm not coming back."

The room was silent. Seth stumbled back, while Edward and Carlisle suddenly appeared beside him.

"I told Carlisle before that I wanted to make a go of things on my own, this is why I've been studying so hard. Now seems like the best time as any to put my plans into action."

Seth stood silent; tears were falling down his cheeks. The sight made the abyss pull even harder, but I had to be stoic, I'd have plenty of time later to allow the abyss to swallow me.

"It doesn't have to be now," Carlisle said. "You have plenty of time..."

"If you think this is the right time, then that's a decision only you can make," Edward said, as he put his hand on Carlisle's shoulder.

"But Edward," Carlisle said in panic.

"I'll explain it later," Edward said calmly.

"Explain it now," Seth said. "Why do you have to leave now? It's because of Liz isn't it?"

I exhaled roughly. "It's because the time is right, that's all. It just happens to be a coincidence that you imprinted today; I had been planning to tell all of you tonight anyway," I lied.

"I don't believe you, you have never talked about leaving before," Seth argued.

"I didn't know when, but I knew that someday it would happen. It just so happens that someday, is today."

"If that is what you want, but do you know where you are going or have you made any arrangements?" Carlisle asked.

I suddenly couldn't think, I was being bombarded on all sides by erratic thoughts and emotions.

"I'm leaving now," I said, and then turned for the door.

"Don't go," Seth pleaded, barely able to spit out the words.

"Goodbye Seth, take care of yourself," were the only words I was able to utter before I launched myself through the door and out into the darkness.

Although my cell phone chirped non-stop from the moment I left, it wasn't until I reached a small town just the other side of Lincoln, Nebraska that I actually stopped to answer it.

"Why haven't you been answering you phone? Where are you?" Edward's voice shot out from the earpiece. "Everyone has been worried sick, Carlisle was about to gather up a hunting party to track you down."

"Sorry, I just needed to get away, I needed time to think."

"Well now that you've had time, when are you coming home?"

"I'm not Edward, I'm not coming back."

There was a long pause; I could hear other voices in the background asking questions.

"You have no car, no money, and no plan," Edward replied. "You forgot your credit card in your haste to get away."

"You searched my room?" I asked, suddenly annoyed.

"Carlisle wanted to make sure you were prepared, so it disturbed us greatly to realize that you weren't."

"I'm sorry that I have caused you all to worry about me, but I just can't come back right now, it would be too difficult for me to deal with everything there."

"I understand, and I figured you might feel that way. I have already gotten things together and we're prepared to bring you the things that you'll need; just tell us where you are and we'll be there shortly."

"Who is 'we', Edward?"

"Alice and I. Of course Carlisle and Esme wanted to come too, but I told them that I thought you'd be more apt to keep running if you were faced with too many of us."

I was suddenly glad that Alice would be coming too. Over the past few months her and I had gotten fairly close, it probably helped that I wasn't as disinclined to her fashion advice as Bella was. She taught me a lot about clothing, and from there, we formed a close bond.

"Thank you Edward. I am actually in a small town just east of Lincoln, Nebraska."

Then came a silence, followed by another brief background conversation, I assumed it was with Alice. "Tell Jasper it's going to take us a bit longer to get there, he's already half-way across the country."

"Brady, exactly _where_ are you planning to go?" Edward asked.

"My thought was New York, I'm sure I could find a job there as a linguist," I said confidently.

"Well that's smart thinking; apparently you didn't make a complete rash decision. Luckily for you, we already have an apartment in the city, it overlooks Central Park, you'll love it. We also have some connections which should be able to help you find a suitable job, along with helping you with anything else you might need."

"I'm sorry to cause you all so much trouble," I said morosely. "I really don't deserve any of this."

"Now you listen to me," Edward growled. "After everything that you have done for this family, how can you even say something stupid like that. Not only that, but you also seem to forget that you are a member of this family now, and we all take care of each other, no matter what."

"Thank you." It was the only response I could manage, and then I prepared myself to face the harsh reality once again. "What happened after I left?"

Another long pause, and then Edward sighed. "Seth took it pretty hard. Liz tried to console him, but even she didn't have any luck. Jacob couldn't understand it, when someone imprints, that person becomes the sole focus of their life. Yet, Liz couldn't seem to regain Seth's focus after you left. After many sobs and arguments with Jacob, Seth and Liz left. Everyone began hitting me with questions; they all seemed to assume that I knew what was going on." Edward suddenly stopped, and there was another long silent pause. "I'm sorry, I hope you're not mad, but I felt they all needed to know the truth. We are a family afterall, and you shouldn't have to hide your true feelings anymore."

I knew Edward was waiting nervously for me to reply to his confession, I was tempted to let him stew in his anxiety a bit longer, but I relented. "So how did everyone take the news?"

"Almost everyone seemed relieved; they had all been so confused, knowing the truth made everything finally make sense."

"You said 'almost everyone'," I interjected. "Who had a problem with it?"

"Well, Jacob of course. Seth is like his little brother, so it made him extremely uncomfortable. He expressed a few harsh words before Carlisle threatened to banish him from the house if he ever heard those things again; Jacob was pretty much silent after that."

"Did anyone else have a problem?" From Edward's hesitation, something told me there was more.

Edward struggled, but continued. "Bella was also inclined to share Jacob's views, although expressing them drew an extremely rare but very intense rebuke from both Alice and Esme, which Bella is still sulking over."

"Gee, you're not sticking up for Bella this time, that's a surprise," I said.

"Normally I would defend my wife staunchly, but this was different. Even I believe she crossed the line, so needless to say, I am actually quite thankful for having to drive halfway across the country tonight."

"So everyone else is ok with me?"

"Yes, everyone else is perfectly fine with you being you. Even Emmett, although he is loathe to admit that he can be so easily beaten by a gay guy." Edward chuckled.

"Carlisle and Esme?"

"They're both worried about you, of course. They told me to tell you that they would prefer you come home, but they both understand how painful that would be right now."

"Yeah, it's just not something I can handle at the moment."

"We all understand. But anyway, Alice and I are heading out now, so find a place that'll be easy for us to find, oh, and please stay out of trouble." I could almost see Edward's sarcastic grin.

"Sure thing, I'll just find a herd or two of deer to terrorize until you arrive." We both chuckled at the thought.

Instead of hunting, I found a nice tree to relax in. I climbed to the top, and then reclined back. I stared up at the stars, focusing on the blackness of the sky. It was the only way to shut out all of the nagging thoughts that constantly poked my mind like razor sharp needles, while the abyss tried to consume the rest.


	23. Chapter 23

11

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 21**

_Moving Forward_

Even driving at over 100, it still took Edward almost eighteen hours to arrive. When darkness gave way to light, I passed the day by searching for beautiful scenery, which was very hard to come by in Nebraska. The word flat didn't even come close to how it appeared to someone who had just spent the past half-year surrounded by the most awesome scenic beauty the country has to offer. Boredom is never a good thing for someone who wants to fill their mind with trivial information; needless to say, it was a very painful eighteen hours.

When we finally left Nebraska, I was able to fill my mind with the endless details of New York that Edward and Alice were all too happy to provide. That is how we spent the entire drive, avoiding all conversation about the past; I was intent on moving forward into the future.

The next three months in New York flew by in a blur. I had gone through two interpreting jobs, quitting both because they weren't right for me. I hadn't wanted a traditional nine-to-five job; I wanted something that was a bit more thrilling, and a bit more global. Thoughts of the Volturi frequently entered my mind, but I wasn't willing to join their group, no matter how bored I was.

It was Carlisle who came to the rescue, not only offering me several contacts who could help, but also the financial backing to achieve what I wanted, to start my own business.

Starting my fourth month, I rented office space and opened my own interpreting service. At the same time, I also used my other skill to make big money off the stock market. I may not have had the money rolling in through the office door, but I was certainly having success by seeing the financials future.

By the fifth month, I had repaid Carlisle, although he insisted that I didn't need to repay him. I was just enjoying the fact that I _could_ repay him, along with building my own reputation within the New York financial community.

Within a year, my interpreting business had started to become successful. I found myself moving from strictly low-paying basic linguist contracts, to full-fledged international contract negotiations. My sudden success came after one particularly intense experience that occurred in Russia. My clients had unknowingly become involved in dealings with the Russian mafia, and mobsters weren't particularly used to having someone trying to 'negotiate' with them. Not surprisingly, it escalated into a violent situation, but I was able to protect my clients and safely get them out of the country, without any further complications. Albeit, the two bullet holes in the back of my suit caused them some concern, but I assured them that Kevlar was quite stylish these days.

Word spread quickly amongst the business elite, especially those who are prone to dealing in problematic parts of the world. My services were quickly in demand, and the money soon began to pour in through the office door.

Personally, I didn't care about the money, I was just thankful that my days and nights were filled with activity. Work was my life now, I never had time anymore to think about anything else, or anyone else. Although, that doesn't mean that I was happy, in fact, I was constantly quite miserable; I just became very good at hiding it.

I hated the city, the noise, the smells. I couldn't hunt within the city, and it wasn't just because the offerings were slim. The smells were so terrible, that I couldn't _track_ anything. When thirst hit, I had to leave the city and travel northward into the rural areas. I hated hunting anymore, being alone in the countryside gave my thoughts space, and space was not good. Space meant that the past could slip back into my mind, so I normally went as long as I could without hunting. Of course, this should mean that humans would become more desirable, but it was quite the opposite.

When I was full, the human scent that was so thick in the city, hardly entered my consciousness. It was only when I was thirsty, that their smell clawed at me, begging for attention. It was at this point, that their smell brought back the repressed memory of a young girl that I had met months earlier. To keep that memory locked away, I had to venture out to feed, allowing my mind only a few brief hours of freedom.

I spent most of my time at the office, and when I wasn't there, I was at the Cullens' posh apartment that overlooked Central Park.

I remember when I first arrived there, just over a year ago.

Alice insisted on entering the apartment first, while Edward and I waited in the hallway. She wanted to make sure that everything was just… perfect.

"Ok, you can come in now," Alice trilled.

I thought I was pretty much prepared for anything; considering this apartment was located on the top floor, across from Central Park, obviously no expense was spared. However, I certainly wasn't prepared for this.

The entry had a large faux dome, with paintings reminiscent of the Sistine Chapel. The floor was of white and gold marble, the walls were a bright white.

"Esme?" I asked.

"Naturally. She wanted to do something in honor of Carlisle's time in Italy," Edward said.

Upon every wall were historical Italian paintings; every room contained antique Italian furniture, much of it an ancient Roman design. Large pillars for doorways, ornate statues, linen draperies, the list went on and on; it was like walking into a wing of a museum that was dedicated to different periods of Italian history.

Alice, of course, kept herding us toward the immaculate closet, which could have been its own separate wing, the rows and rows of clothes were shocking in itself.

"Most of the clothes were for Edward. Carlisle and Esme spend so little time here, that they only needed a small section," Alice said, pointing over to the rows of clothing along a corner of the immense room. "Everything else was for Edward, and considering you're roughly the same size, we won't need to restock."

I raised an eyebrow. "Alice, you mean you're not going to use this as an excuse to go shopping?"

"Oh no, we'll be going shopping, but this is New York afterall, so we'll be shopping for me," she said enthusiastically. Edward and I both sighed, knowing what we were in for.

Later, while Alice flitted around the apartment cleaning and re-cleaning, obviously giving Edward and I some time to talk, I asked him about Bella.

"Edward, I'm not trying to be rude or anything, but what is it between you and Bella?"

"What do you mean?"

"You guys got married, after a very, um, unique courtship… but yet you have the strangest relationship I've ever seen."

"How so?"

"Well, honestly, Bella is obsessed with you, or rather, with your looks. Almost every thought she's had since you two met, have been about your looks. That is until your honeymoon, and then it became your looks and her sexual desires. Is that _really _love or is it more of an obsession?"

Suddenly the phone rang, it was Bella again, the fourth call since we arrived in New York, the twelfth call since they picked me up in Nebraska.

Edward chatted with her for a few moments. "Bella, I've told you this several times before, Alice isn't answering her phone because she needs space, she will talk to you when she's ready." — "She has her reasons, your comments were out of line." — "Oh please, not the conspiracy theory again Bella, that is really getting old." — "Listen I've got to go, Brady and I are in the middle of an important discussion, I'll talk to you later." — "No I'm not avoiding you, but I've got to go. Love you."

Edward sighed as he hung up the phone. "Now what were we talking about?"

"I was asking whether she loved you, or was just obsessed with you."

"I haven't gotten that impression from her, all I know is that she loves me and I love her."

"But _why_? That is the question I'm asking."

"Are you trying to annoy me, is that your way of avoiding your own problems?"

"Maybe, but that notwithstanding, I'm curious about your relationship. I mean, you two never _do_ anything together, other than sex. You don't have any common interests, you don't go places together, or do any other normal things, either you're together in bed or she is with Renesmee and you are doing your own thing."

"We spend time together with Renesmee," he said in contradiction.

"Sometimes, yes, but what else do you share? I mean, Seth and I were always doing stuff together, learning about each other, sharing ideas and thoughts. You and Bella seem so limited, aren't you worried about that getting old after awhile?"

"I'm not liking this conversation Brady. My relationship with Bella, quite frankly, isn't any of your concern. Besides, it isn't like Esme and Carlisle have everything in common, nor do Rose and Emmett, nor Alice and Jasper for that matter."

"Well, I know that when Rose is working on cars, Emmett is right there with her, and when Carlisle isn't working, he is with Esme and they're off exploring different things, and when aren't Alice and Jasper together doing _something_, even if it's just playing a game. What exactly do you and Bella do together Edward? What is your love based upon?"

"It's not brains," Alice chimed in from the corner where she was dusting. "Edward was just as obsessed as Bella in the beginning, but I think it had more to do with his frustration and curiosity over not being able to hear her thoughts. Then I think it became more about the damsel-in-distress aspect, he felt obligated to her because of how strongly he impacted her life. Edward has always been the type to sacrifice his own happiness for someone else."

"I'm not arguing this point anymore," Edward said coldly. "This conversation is over, unless someone cares to change the topic."

As if on queue, Edward's phone rang again.

"What is it now Bella?" — "Bella, for heaven's sake, I think you can manage being alone for a couple of nights." — "Why don't you read a book or something?" — "Bella, this obsession is getting annoying." — "That's it Bella, I'm hanging up now, I'll talk to you when things have calmed down here." Then suddenly his phone went sailing across the room, it hit the wall with a loud crack, shattering into a thousand pieces before falling to the floor at Alice's feet.

"How about them Yankees," I said sarcastically.

Edward snarled a grin, and then he turned toward the window, disappearing into deep thought.

I never mentioned Bella again that night, but I hoped Edward would consider what I had said. Love, true love, wasn't about superficial obsessions; true love was about so much more. I just hoped that Edward would realize this, but given the type of man that he is, I knew he would never even contemplate divorcing her. He'd rather dwell on the limited positives, instead of realizing that he could receive so much more from a healthy-minded relationship.

I chuckled to myself at that thought. Like _my_ relationship was so much healthier, my relationship with the now-imprinted heterosexual werewolf, the one that I had ran away from and continued to be tortured daily over. Yeah, I was the poster child for healthy relationships.

It was that night, after those thoughts, that I vowed to lock the past away. I would never again allow myself to peer into Seth's future, constantly hoping to see a crack in his imprinted relationship. Therefore, I couldn't glimpse into any of the werewolves futures, because Seth could be involved in them. That night I closed Seth and everything that had to do with Seth, away into a firmly locked mental box, and no matter how much it rattled and demanded attention, I would never unlock it again.

A year later, I found myself still battling the constantly rattling box, but I had successfully avoided opening it. My work kept the box hidden away in a dark corner; it was only when I hunted, that it had the opportunity to compete for my attention.

This was why I spent most nights locked away in my office, the noise never ceased there; it was located on the 33rd floor of an office building near the United Nations; prime location to attract clients from all over the world.

My office was, per Cullen tradition, impeccably decorated. Of course, I was able to enlist Esme's interior decorative skills in the overall design; she and Carlisle were more than happy to visit me in New York. Carlisle brought with him the paperwork finalizing my adoption, something he was extremely thrilled to bestow; I was both honored, and surprised. After all, I thought for sure that once I left in such a dubious manner, that he would rescind his offer. Fortunately, Carlisle was much more understanding, and within days of their arrival in New York, I officially became Brady Cullen-Dawn.

It was during their visit that Carlisle mentioned Bella.

"It's probably better for you to live here anyway, with everything at home being so strained right now," Carlisle said.

"What's going on at home?" I asked.

"Ever since the night you left, Bella has been acting strangely. I had noticed before that Bella seemed extremely attached to Edward, but now she practically smothers him. He can't walk 20 feet away without her following behind him, it's bizarre, even for Bella," he said.

"That's not the only thing," Esme added. "Ever since that night when Alice and I both yelled at her for those very unkind things she said, she rarely speaks to us. Alice mentioned that Bella believes that there is some sort of conspiracy against her now, and she thinks that you are somehow manipulating all of us." Esme shrugged her shoulders, then shook her head.

"We know this isn't your fault Brady, there is just something not right with Bella. It's just so confusing, because she used to be so stable and in control," Carlisle said.

"Stable and in control?" I laughed, "You're kidding right? Do you know how Bella acted during the time when you all disappeared from Forks for a few months?"

"No, Edward never mentioned it and we never asked," Carlisle said.

"I only know this because of having scanned her thoughts and memories, it offers a side of Bella that you both were never aware of," I said.

Both of them looked at me curiously; Carlisle arched his brow.

"When Edward left, Bella was devastated, as you both already know. However, she discovered that if she did something dangerous, then she would hear Edward's voice in her head, begging her to stop. In order to continue hearing this voice, she kept putting herself in danger. So when Edward was away, she became obsessed with the delusional voice that she created of him," I said.

"I wish we would have known this _before_ they got married. Is Edward aware of this?" Carlisle asked.

"Yeah, Bella told him a bit about it, of course it made him feel even more guilty about leaving."

"Creating voices in her head that she could only hear when she was in danger… that's definitely not normal," Carlisle said. "It sounds more and more like she has some form of mental disorder, especially with her increasingly obsessive and paranoid behavior."

"This definitely isn't the Bella that we thought we knew," Esme said. "I just couldn't believe the things she was saying that night, her attitude; it was just so out of character."

"Yes, I agree. I could understand that sort of thing from Jacob, he's never been out in the world, he doesn't know about the differences in people, and how times have changed. However, Bella spent years in a large city; she shouldn't be so judgmental," Carlisle said.

"Honestly, I don't believe it has anything to do with my sexual orientation, it has more to do with the mere fact that I exist," I said.

"What do you mean?" Carlisle asked.

"Bella's attitude toward me changed the moment you and Edward accepted me into the family. Bella went from being the shiny new star in the Cullen family, to being just another of the brood, or so it felt to her. That may not have been such a big deal, had Edward not become such a close friend. I was suddenly taking Edward's sole focus away from her, and she resented me for it. Each time one of you sticks up for me, it reminds her that she is not the queen that she believed herself to be. Her fairy tale that she built in her head has started to crumble, and she isn't able to handle reality very well."

Carlisle nodded. "That makes sense; Bella's behavior has definitely changed since you came into our lives. Although, that isn't your fault Brady, this is something Bella will have to learn to deal with and accept. You have done nothing wrong, so don't let this situation bring you down. You have enough on your mind; you don't need to dwell on this."

"This will be something Edward and Bella will have to work out, I just wish my son wasn't so selfless," Esme said.

"I asked Edward when he was here, to explain exactly what their love was based upon, and he couldn't answer the question. Most long term, stable relationships have some sort of foundation; shared interests, time spent together, communication, so many things. Love doesn't revolve around obsessive physical attraction," I said.

"Yes, that's true. Your point reminds me of the last time we all went out to play baseball, do you remember?" Esme asked.

"I do actually. Uh, Seth was with us, and I made sure I played on the opposite team so I could help him out," I added, trying to control the anger I suddenly felt for allowing myself to remember so clearly.

"Yes. However, Bella refused to play, even though Edward practically begged her. She simply said that she wasn't into sports and didn't feel like playing. It hurt his feelings, although he didn't show it. Before she became one of us, one of the things Edward was so looking forward to, was being able to play baseball with her, and when the chance came, she completely turned him down," Esme said.

"Ok, ok, enough of this depressing talk, we need to go out and celebrate, you're officially a Cullen now, Brady," Carlisle added, trying to be cheerful. "This is a time to be happy, you're about to open your own business, we should be spending our time looking forward to the future."

It wasn't very long after that, maybe a couple of weeks, that my business officially opened.

Prior to opening, I hired a very talented assistant named Sabrina. She wasn't what many would considerer 'right' for the position; even Carlisle raised an eyebrow when I hired her. However, she was extremely talented in linguistics and, like me, didn't like people much. That reason alone would have disqualified her from any job that involved answering phones and greeting clients, but she was exactly what I was looking for.

Sabrina was in her mid-twenties, short, and extremely thin. She wasn't unattractive, however, she wasn't going to be found walking the runways anytime soon either. Her fashion sense would have made Alice cringe, even Bella had one up on her there. Yet, she made up for it with her piercing bright blue eyes, mesmerizing smile, and quirky personality. However, those attributes were initially overshadowed by her nose ring, metal cross necklaces, and glossy black fingernails. When you include the fact that she cussed like a sailor, it just really made life a lot more interesting; she was exactly the type of distraction that I needed.

Over the next few months, Sabrina and I became close, as close as I would allow. We became friends, and although she knew there was something definitely different about me, she never asked. Inquisitive at first as to why I never ate, even when I took her to lunch; why I was never tired; why I never ventured out to enjoy the sunlit days, or why my desk frequently seemed to shatter as if a great weight had fallen on it. After only offering her shrugs to her questions, she finally gave up asking. It was at that point, that I think we became friends. She didn't ask, I didn't tell. Yet, she always offered her concern for my lack of social life, not like her's was any better. At least _she_ got to sleep, that was a luxury I definitely missed. The ability to slink beneath the covers and allow your mind to jet off to faraway lands and experience mystical adventures, all while reality was so conveniently and easily locked away. Only when you woke, did you have to face it again. Unlike being awake for eternity, where reality stared you in the face every second of every minute, of every hour, of every day, of every year.

Work was my way of sleeping, it allowed me to escape from the reality of the rattling box, and it definitely helped me to escape to faraway lands and experience mystical adventures. One such adventure came while I was working with a client in Italy, almost two years after I moved to New York.

When the Italian assignment ended, I stuck around and made a surprise visit to my Volturi 'friends'. Aro was quite surprised by my visit, but very welcoming nonetheless. Initially Caius wasn't pleased, nor was the rest of the Volturi guard. However, after spending a couple of months with them, they all started to treat me as one of their own. Even the dark-hearted Caius, who held such deep-seated hatred for me, became intrigued by my insight and knowledge. He and I spent hours discussing many topics, as I also did with Aro and Marcus. The rest of the Volturi guard became convinced that I would become the next leader of the Volturi, so there soon appeared an internal struggle between them to decide who would be my favorites. Aro was quite aware of the situation, and surprisingly enough, he didn't dissuade it. In fact, he even joked about it once.

"Alas, this old vampire may never die, but that doesn't mean he will rule forever."

The comment drew hushed murmurs through the chamber, but he never bothered to explain what he meant. This, of course, only caused the frenzied speculation to increase.

"Why did you say that Aro? Now you've gone and added fuel to the fire. You know I have no intention of leading the Volturi, I have no intention of even becoming a member of the Volturi," I said.

"That may be your feeling now, but, we have plenty of years before us. Times change, feelings change. If I were to ever—retire, you would be the only one I would consider as a replacement. You possess both the heart and integrity to lead, along with the compassion to protect as well. So until you change your mind, I won't consider retiring."

A few weeks later, toward the end of my visit, the Volturi received some disturbing information about a renegade coven living in the highlands of Scotland. The coven had killed two of the three Volturi guards that were sent to spy on them, one had narrowly escaped, but not without significant injury. One of his arms had been completely burned beyond repair, along with significant burns to his back and legs.

The leader of the coven, Kraig, had the ability to manipulate fire, a singular ability, unlike Benjamin who could control all four elements. However, the true danger came from his mate, Natalie, for she had the ability to create a shield, which unlike Bella and Renata, was both mentally _and_ physically impenetrable. This meant that no one could get near Kraig; he would simply stand there and burn everyone to death.

Naturally, Aro asked for my help, as I was the only one who could handle such a threat. Caius was disgusted once more, not by me, but at the realization that the Volturi were losing their edge in the world. More frequently now, powerful vampires were openly challenging them, they were no longer living in fear.

I assessed the situation carefully, and agreed to help only after I was sure that these renegades truly presented a danger to the vampire world. As it turned out, this particular coven was working closely with a group of Romanian royalty, relatives of Stefan and Vladimir, who, surprisingly enough, weren't involved. The Scottish coven's intention was to create an army more powerful than the Volturi, and challenge them for supremacy of the world. They, like so many others, believed that vampires should rule humans, not hide from them.

Learning this fact, I was more than willing to lend the Volturi a hand; as Aro had said, I was born to lead _and_ protect. It wasn't just the Volturi's lives that were at stake, but the human race as well.


	24. Chapter 24

10

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 22**

_Showdown_

As I prepared for the trip to Scotland, I noticed the Volturi guard preparing themselves as well.

"Aro, what's going on?" I asked.

"The guard is preparing to accompany you into battle," Aro said lightly.

"No, I'm not taking the entire guard, I don't need them _all_," I argued.

"Then how many do you want to take with you?"

"Only two, Alec and Jane," I replied.

Then came a long silence from the guard, their faces were twisted into shocked expressions; except for Jane and Alec who were grinning wildly.

"Are you sure? Maybe you could also take Felix and Demetri," Aro said.

"No, Alec and Jane will do. However, if that's not acceptable, then I suppose the Volturi could try to handle this problem themselves."

Aro laughed. "You're a tough negotiator, now I know why you are so successful in your work. Fine, Alec and Jane it is then."

I heard groans from the guard, although the sound wasn't able to drown out the excited tinkling of laugher from the twins.

Alec and Jane were very fascinating; ancient vampires trapped within the bodies of twelve-year-old children. Jane reminded me a bit of Rosalie actually, especially her feistiness and reactive demeanor. While Alec reminded me of Alice, he was somewhat feminine in nature, but also quite even-tempered. They were almost the exact opposites of each other, yet, intertwined like yin and yang.

Aro had explained their history to me, although I had already seen it through all of their memories. However, I didn't have the heart to interrupt his story, so I allowed him to continue.

"Of course the twins Alec and Jane were my greatest acquisition," Aro said in an animated tone. "Thanks to Eleazar, I was aware of their potential even before they were transformed."

"So how come they look so young?" I asked, wanting to appear naïve.

"I kept my eye on them, waiting until the time was right for them to join us, but then those idiotic villagers accused their mother of witchcraft, and subsequently sentenced her and her children to death by burning." Aro then became visibly angry as he remembered. "The children were first made to watch their mother burn; I can still see their memories so clearly; what those children went through is beyond description. Although, I'm sure you already know all of this, I sometimes forget about _your_ many talents."

"It's ok, I prefer to hear the story verbally, it tends to put all of the pieces together," I lied.

Aro smiled, and then began to stride around the room, becoming more animated as he continued. "As soon as they had been sentenced, it didn't take us long to mobilize. When we reached the village, their mother was already consumed by flames. Jane had been severely burned as she tried to save her mother, while Alec seemed frozen in place; he refused to move even though the flames were gradually burning him where he stood. Even though they were only twelve-year-olds, normally much too young, but it was the only way to save them. I gave the order to eliminate the entire village, although we saved a few to allow Alec and Jane their revenge." Aro smiled brightly as he recalled the aftermath of their transformation.

"Were they difficult to... control, since they were so young, and so powerful?" I asked.

"Thankfully they were quite brilliant and mature for their age, so they were easily able to understand and accept everything I told them. Since then, they have done everything I have asked of them, a way of repaying me for allowing them their revenge I suppose." Aro shrugged. "Whatever the reason, they have been invaluable ever since."

At the time, I certainly never expected that a few weeks later, I would be the one leading Alec and Jane on their next mission for the Volturi.

As we made our way to Scotland, I learned a lot more about them, something mere memories and mind reading couldn't accomplish.

Jane was much like Aro in that she loved studying history. Having been involved in much of it, she took pride in the Volturi legacy that she helped create; this was the main reason why she was so vehement in her defense of the Volturi laws.

Alec on the other hand, was much more quiet and contemplative. However, once he committed to a course of action, he was steadfast and determined to succeed. He was also highly protective of his sister, although he allowed her to take the lead; it was his strength that empowered her's.

We discussed many things during our journey, and they constantly amazed me with their depth of knowledge and maturity. They, in turn, were engrossed by my views and opinions as it related to human and vampire interaction. They were also intrigued by my spiritual beliefs and my uncanny ability to understand things on so many different levels.

"Aro never dwells on things too long," Jane said. "Normally once he gets the basic information, his attention shifts elsewhere. You seem to take something and look at it from every possible angle, trying to understand all of its aspects."

"I don't like to rush to judgment; I've learned that there are many different possibilities with every decision or action, so it's prudent to look at something from all possible angles. It's similar to humans; they have been known to convict and execute someone, only to discover later that they had been wrongly accused. It happens because they are so quick to judge, without exhausting all possibilities first. I don't want to be that type of person, so I work hard to make the best possible decision in any given situation."

"Jane doesn't have that kind of patience," Alec chuckled.

"I guess it's a good thing then, that I'm not leading," Jane replied cattily.

"I still don't understand how you can be around humans, and not see them as food. Instead, you run off into the woods to feed off of foul-tasting animals, personally, I think that's revolting. You must really love humans if you can avoid killing them," Jane said.

I laughed. "Don't assume anything Jane. Honestly, I really haven't had the best of luck with humans. It probably didn't help that I never really identified with humanity; I was never one to become trapped in the everyday mundane aspects that so many humans thrive on. I have always been the type who sees beyond what is there, so it was tough for me to be in their world.

"Then if you feel that way, why do you avoid feeding on them?" Alec asked, scratching his head, appearing completely confused.

"Because I want to believe humans have the potential to grow, if they could only find a way to discover what is beyond the material, physical world."

"From the sounds of it, you seem to believe, like Aro, that vampires are superior to humans," Jane added.

"I can understand how you might think that way from what I said, but that is truly not the case. I don't believe that vampires or any other species are superior to another, nor do I consider myself better than anyone else. I _do_ understand things on a level that most others haven't yet realized, but that doesn't mean they aren't able to. There are many others out there who are awakening to the same understanding that I have, so there is still hope that others will awaken as well."

"Is that why the _Cullens_ refuse to feed on humans too?" Jane said. The way she said the name showed that she still wasn't over her previous encounters with them.

"Don't forget Jane, I am a Cullen too, they are my family now," I reminded. "However, their reasons for abstaining from humans are different than mine. Carlisle believes in preserving humans because he thinks it's the right thing to do, and the rest of the family does their best to follow his lead. He hasn't yet found his spiritual path, so his reasons are still somewhat unclear to him. Although, the other aspect of avoiding human blood, is that it gives vampires the ability to remain calm and peaceful. We can coexist, without the barbaric vampire nature that human blood seems to evoke within us."

"Still, it just seems odd," Jane said.

"It only seems odd Jane, because that is all we've ever known," Alec replied. "Perhaps if we would have been raised in the same way as the Cullens, then we would find the idea of feeding on humans repulsive as well."

"Thankfully _that_ won't happen," Jane snarled. "I think I'd rather turn to ash then live on animals."

I couldn't help but laugh at her, oh the horrors of not killing humans. Alec and Jane both laughed with me, seeming to find humor in it also.

When we arrived in Scotland, I was immediately taken aback by the intense greenery of the lush vegetation. The highlands, with its huge rolling hills and majestic mountains, were mesmerizing. However, since we were not on a sightseeing mission, there was no time to stop and enjoy it; begrudgingly, we continued onward.

From a distance, the castle appeared small, but as we grew closer, it became immense. I was sure that our approach had been observed, there was no way to hide ourselves, as it was completely open land leading up to the castle. The backside of the castle was completely protected, as it was located against the frigid loch. While on each side were high rolling hills, with steep sides that flowed down into the water below.

As we grew nearer, I went over the plan again, trying to make sure that the twins understood the situation; I was not about to return to face Aro's wrath after I had lost one or both in battle. However, my concern was unwarranted as they were very clear on everything I had explained.

When we arrived, I noticed that the castle seemed to have been recently restored. You could clearly see the differences between the old wall, and the new. The old wall was much darker and still looked fragile and brittle, while the new wall was much lighter in color and appeared smooth and strong. A long arched bridge seemed to have been added after the original construction, although it still appeared somewhat discolored like the old wall.

Immediately after crossing the bridge, we found ourselves surrounded by a group of vampires. Six of them appeared behind us, while eight others were in front; it was obvious from their crouched posture that they weren't there to talk.

I scanned through the thoughts that surrounded me; I then realized that the group that surrounded us wasn't the only vampires in the castle. There was an additional five that were still hidden behind the walls, one of them being their leader, Kraig, along with his mate, Natalie, the shield. He was still assessing our threat level, trying to determine whether it was even necessary for him to make an appearance. The three other hidden vampires were Kraig's Romanian supporters, the relatives of Stefan and Vladimir.

I decided it was time to speak, before we were forced to reveal our true strength, thereby making future negotiations impossible.

"We are representatives of the Volturi, we have come to negotiate with your leader," I announced firmly.

The surrounding vampires remained silent, while their eyes rapidly shifted between the three of us. They were clearly aware of whom the twin vampires were, but I confused them. They weren't able to understand why such a small contingent of the Volturi guard were sent, and since I was the one speaking, then I must clearly be the strongest, of so they thought.

Kraig, however, wasn't so sure of that. He felt that maybe Aro was so overconfident in the strength of the twins, that he merely sent a messenger, and nothing more.

Alec, Jane and I remained in our upright posture. Although when I took a quick glance at the two, they were smugly grinning at their would-be opponents, obviously trying to antagonize them into combat.

"Alec, Jane, please show our new friends some respect. We don't need to escalate the situation by being rude," I said calmly.

Instantly they followed my command, turning their expressions to one of seriousness.

Just then, the group in front of us suddenly shifted apart, allowing for an opening in the middle. Kraig and his mate were now walking toward us; a sense of superiority was noticeable in their movements. Kraig brandished a flaming torch, an ominous symbol of his combustible talent.

I could see immediately, how easy it would be to become disconcerted by the odd pairing. Kraig's appearance was quite shocking, definitely not something you'd expect from the leader of a powerful vampire coven.

The first thing one noticed is his clothing, which was completely gothic in style. Black leather pants, black torn t-shirt, combat boots, all swathed in a long dark trench coat. His black hair was long and greasy, it appeared to just ooze off of his head and flow down his back. He wore chains from his nose ring to each of his ears, along with several skull rings on each hand; each seemed to accent his black painted fingernails. For a brief second, I thought of Sabrina; I was tempted to chuckle, but I held it in.

Natalie, on the other hand, looked like a runway model. Her clothes were more Prada in design, expensive and elegant, as was her mannerisms and regal movements; her professionally styled red hair completed the picture of stunning beauty. Yet beneath the façade lurked a determined and frightening monster, her appearance was only an illusion meant to distract and pacify any would-be adversaries.

I knew in an instant that this would not end well. They would never surrender, nor would they give up their quest of domination, each of them was fueled by a hatred that ran soul-deep. However, it was not for them that I was determined to put forth my best effort at resolving the situation peacefully; I had the Volturi's faltering reputation to rebuild.

"I see Aro sent his lap dogs," Kraig barked. Natalie giggled at his words, then feigning an air of innocence.

"Peace friend," I said, stealing Aro's favorite phrase. "We are not here to fight; we are only here to negotiate."

"What _exactly_ are you here to negotiate?" Kraig demanded.

"First, let me introduce myself, my name is Brady... Brady Cullen-Dawn."

"Cullen? Are you related to the Cullen family that defeated the Volturi almost two years ago?"

Jane hissed, but I ignored her.

"Yes, they are my adoptive family. So you've heard of us?"

"I've heard the name, that's all," Kraig replied, looking more curious now. "If that's true, then why are you working for them now? You should join us, and together we'll eliminate the Volturi scourge once and for all."

This time it was Alec who hissed. "Calm Alec," I said, putting a hand on his tiny shoulder.

Returning my focus back to Kraig, I said, "I am here to negotiate with you, on behalf of the Volturi."

Kraig just glared at me, irritated that I hadn't responded positively to his proposal.

"I asked you before what you were here to negotiate?" He growled, after a few moments pause.

"I am here to negotiate your surrender," I said matter-of-factly.

"You've got to be joking," Kraig said. Then he and his entire coven began to laugh hysterically.

With his attention temporarily unfocused, I attempted to use my duplicated form of Jane's ability against him. The attempt was blocked by Natalie's shield; her use of which sent a jolt of electricity down my body; I smiled in response.

"Kraig, they're trying to attack you!" Natalie exclaimed.

Suddenly, Kraig's coven was crouched and prepared to launch themselves in response.

"Jane, that wasn't very nice, we're still—negotiating," I said as I turned to address the angelic-looking vampire.

"Sorry," she said innocently, "I just didn't find his response funny."

Jane stuck to the plan exactly as I had designed. I needed to duplicate Natalie's ability first, in order to render it useless later. The only way to do so, and allow my body enough time to process the new skill, was to find a way to blame one of the twin's. Had they suspected me of the attack, then they would never pause long enough for me to prepare myself.

"I apologize for Jane's rash behavior. She has a short fuse, and doesn't appreciate having her family belittled," I said, as I bowed forward to show remorse, much as Aro had done at the end of our own previous confrontation.

"Watch yourself witch," Kraig hissed, glaring at the innocent Jane. "Next time, I'll show you what real fire is like."

Jane and Alec both bristled at the no-so-subtle reminder of their past.

"Ahem," I said, calling Kraig's focus back to me. "If you agree to surrender, then we shall leave the others in peace. I can't guarantee _you_ anything of course, other than your safety back to Volterra."

"I am fully aware of the witches' abilities, and as you've seen, they are useless against me. Therefore, in regards to your offer, my coven and I decline. However, my offer is still open for you to join us, although, the witches will have to die of course, I'm sure you understand," Kraig said arrogantly.

"Well that is disappointing," I replied. "My first attempt at negotiating for the Volturi and it ends in failure, how very discouraging."

"What about my offer?" Kraig asked.

"I'm afraid I will have to decline as well. However, please allow me to at least address your coven directly before we escalate the situation." I pleaded.

"I don't see any reason..."

"I simply want to offer them a peaceful solution, seeing as how you are prepared to condemn them all," I interrupted.

Kraig guffawed. "Fine, make your plea then."

I stood up perfectly straight and addressed the amused members of his coven.

"Dear friends, on behalf of the Volturi, I am prepared to spare your lives, if you are willing to refrain from this futile battle. There is no reason for you to become further involved with this criminal and his hostile intentions. Stand down and live… or fight and die."

Their response was quick and decisive; several of them laughed, while others spat in our direction.

"I'm sorry that you've all chosen to die, but so be it. There is nothing further for us to say then," I said calmly.

On queue, those who had gathered behind us suddenly found themselves cut off from all senses. Alec swiftly began dismantling them in rapid succession; biting each of their necks, then tearing their heads off.

Jane raced forward against those in front of us. While I used Alec's duplicated ability to numb them, Jane quickly dismantled them. The only ones not affected were Kraig and Natalie, as they remained wrapped in Natalie's shield; though they were both shocked by the sudden ferocious attack by the twin angelic devils.

Quickly moving to start his own offensive, Kraig shot three streams of flame out from his torch, directing the first toward the maniacal Jane; with the other two directed toward Alec and me.

Abruptly, each of the flames shot upwards away from us, and then suddenly returned back down toward their master; only with sheer luck were they able to avoid the plunging inferno.

Within mere seconds, Alec and Jane were back at my side, having already dismantled the force that had gathered against us. As for the three vampires that had remained inside the castle, they all refused to step forward to help their leader.

"As you can see, your abilities are nothing compared to ours," I said. "However, the die has been cast, and your fate has been sealed. Once negotiations are concluded and a decision is reached, Volturi honor dictates no mercy."

The look of shock fell from their faces, being quickly replaced by intensity and determination.

"We can beat them," Natalie hissed. "Scum like them won't destroy our future."

"Yes," Kraig replied. "Together we will destroy them, and then conquer the rest of the world."

I sighed. I had been hoping for some sign of rationality, but I found none. All I could do was shake my head at their utter lack of comprehension.

Kraig and Natalie crouched in defiance, and then lurched forward with blinding speed; flames short forth in front of them, a vain attempt at distraction.

The flames, on my command, reversed course and engulfed the two in an instant. No sound was heard, no cries of pain, just the crackling and popping sound of their fiery destruction.

"You used my power on them didn't you?" Alec asked incredulously.

"Of course," I said. "I am not here to torture anyone, I'm not a demon. I tried to negotiate and I failed. The only recourse was to fight."

"What about those inside?" Jane asked, a smile of anticipation crossed her face.

"Leave them," I commanded.

"But they…" Jane tried to argue.

"They chose not to fight, so they shall live. They shall live to spread the world of the Volturi's quick victory over someone who dared challenge them," I said cheerfully, winking at the frustrated twin.

"Good idea," Alec agreed.

"We're not done yet, we've still got a mess to clean up," I said.

Quickly the twins gathered up the pieces of the fallen Scottish coven, tossing them onto their leader's smoldering ashes, where they were equally consumed.

As I watched them work, I couldn't help but muse about Bella's previous plan. She wanted to learn to fight so that she could challenge Alec and Jane on the battlefield. Having now seen them in action, I knew that Bella wouldn't have stood a chance. Even unarmed, the twins had superior fighting skills, all thanks to Aro's insistence on being prepared for any situation. Well, if nothing else, he and I definitely had that in common.

When the flames started to soften, we began our journey back to Volterra. While the twins took turns bragging about how well they did on the battlefield, my own thoughts turned toward home.


	25. Chapter 25

9

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 23**

_Slaughter_

Upon our return to Volterra, we were greeted with great excitement. Jane enthusiastically detailed the entire battle, including my decision to leave several witnesses to spread the word of our lopsided victory. While the details were being shared, many minds shifted back to the prospect of my taking over leadership of the Volturi. Aro, keenly aware of this, reminded me of what he had said earlier. Once again, I politely declined his offer, and instead announced that I was returning to New York the next day.

My announcement was met with disappointment amongst the entire Volturi family. It was tough to reject all of the pleas to stay, but I assured them that I would visit again soon.

The next morning I was on a jet crossing the Atlantic, bound for home. I couldn't wait to be back to the peace and quiet of my office, or rather, back to the normality it would bring. I had also missed Sabrina; her laughter was quite grounding to me.

Returning to my office and seeing my new desk brought back the memories of what had transpired before I had left. It was because of that sudden phone call, I extended my stay in Italy; I needed time to calm the rattling box.

That morning my phone rang, it was Edward.

"Hey Edward, what's up?" I asked.

"I'm sure you already know why I'm calling," Edward said.

"Um, no, I haven't a clue."

"Odd, I thought you would have seen this."

"Sorry, I haven't been looking for anything, other than the stock markets." I laughed, he didn't. "What's wrong Edward, what's going on?"

"I've been putting this call off for a while, I had rather hoped you'd have already seen everything and I wouldn't have to say it."

I abruptly stood up from my chair; it always annoyed me when people played guessing games. "What is this about?"

"It's about Seth." Edward paused then, obviously giving me time to compose myself.

"What?" Was all I could manage.

"He asked Liz to marry him; they are planning a spring wedding next year. Seth asked me to—well, he wants to send you an invitation but only if you'd actually show up. He wanted me to ask you first, he really wants you here."

The box not only began rattling, but also grew in size and weight. My head began spinning with torturous thoughts. Not thoughts of the wedding itself, but afterwards, the honeymoon. Although I was convinced that Seth had already surrendered his virginity to her, but on the off chance that he hadn't, it would happen that night for sure. My stomach began to lurch, as if trying to throw up something that wasn't there. I never wanted to imagine Seth with anyone but me, and now I was confronted with that reality once again.

"Edward, I have to go," I said as my body continued to convulse.

"I'm sorry; I knew how this would hurt you, that is why I put it off. But—what should I tell him?"

"Tell him that I can't..., I just can't."

"He really misses you, and wants to see you very badly."

"Edward, don't do this to me, I can't handle the thoughts of him… and her—I just can't bear it."

"I understand, I really do. I'll figure something out to tell him."

"Thanks. Anyway, I gotta go. Goodbye Edward."

Before he could reply, the phone crumpled to pieces in my suddenly clenched fist. I slammed my other hand down on the desk, and with a familiar loud crack, the desk buckled and fell to the floor.

Within seconds, Sabrina was peeking in. "That's the fifth desk this year," she chuckled. "Maybe we should order in bulk this time."

I shrugged. "Maybe."

"What's wrong?" she said, finally aware of my mood.

"Dreaded phone call from home. Seth is getting married, he wants to send me an invitation; Edward called to see if that was ok."

I had explained to her some of the details a couple of months after we became close. She inquired as to why I spent so much time alone, and why I seemed so sad whenever it was cloudy… and rainy.

"I'm so sorry Brady. I can't even imagine what you must be feeling," she said sympathetically.

I sighed. "It's ok, I'll get over it, just like I've always done. I just really didn't need this right now, not after I had been able to lock those feelings away."

That is why, when my assignment was complete in Italy, I decided to stay for a while. I wasn't in any hurry to return and face those thoughts again. Yet, even after being away for a couple of months, the memory came crashing back as soon as I walked in the door. Life can be so cruel and unfair sometimes.

For the next couple of months, I made great progress in shrinking the rattling box again, and had once again shoved it off into a tiny corner of my mind. Work was still my only respite, and thankfully, I was continuously busy. I was traveling even more lately, and had assignments booked for the next eight months.

Finally, everything seemed to be moving in the right direction, or so I thought; then I received that fateful call.

"Hey Edward," I said, answering the incoming call.

"Brady, we need you to come home right away, something has happened," Edward said. The tone of his voice was rushed and full of panic.

Immediately I was on my feet, I swung to face the window in preparation of the news to come… staring out at the overcast drizzly morning, Edward's words changed my life forever.

"The wolves were attacked late last night, several of them didn't survive. We need you here."

I couldn't speak I was completely numb. "Seth?" I gasped.

"We don't know, he's missing, nobody has been able to find him, not even Jacob. We think he has gone after them by himself."

Suddenly my brain snapped into action, the rattling box exploded upon command, and I was able to peer into Seth's future; I found only shadow… and darkness.

"Edward, tell me what happened," I demanded.

"Just get here quickly, I'll explain everything then."

"Edward, please tell me now, I can't see them anymore…" I had to stop, I couldn't continue.

"It wasn't just the wolves that were attacked; it was also those that they were with at the time. Jared and Kim were both killed, as were Collin, Brady, and several of the other young wolves, along with members of their family. Sam, Emily, Paul, Rachel, Embry, and Quil were lucky, they happened to be together at the time and were able to fend off the attackers. Seth and Liz weren't so lucky, and neither was Leah."

I swallowed hard. "What happened to them?"

"Seth and Liz were out for a walk along the ocean when they were attacked. Seth was unable to protect her, but before they could…finish him," Edward paused. Then taking in a deep breath, "Leah showed up at the last minute, but she was killed trying to protect him. After that, the attackers ran off, and we believe Seth is pursuing them."

"WHO?" I yelled. "Who did this?" Everything in sight became tinged in red as my fury exploded.

"Vampires!"

"Volturi?" I hissed.

"No, apparently a southern coven, we believe they were seeking revenge for Victoria."

"What about Jacob, is he..."

"He is fine, he was here at the time, they chose not to attack us, probably aware of our strength. Instead, they waited until the wolves dropped their guard, and went after them individually."

"They will _all_ pay for this; I will hunt them down and destroy every one of them!"

"Brady, just get here, we need you to help us track Seth. He can't handle this alone, but Jacob believes Seth knows this. He's not going for revenge; he's going because he doesn't want to survive."

I knew this; I saw this, his future… darkness.

"I'm on my way; I'll be there in a couple of hours."

I hung up the phone, turned around, and shattered my desk into tiny pieces. I couldn't cry, I could only lash out physically to release my emotions.

Sabrina quickly rushed in, she didn't joke about the desk.

"What happened?" She asked.

"Cancel all of my appointments, I have a family emergency to attend to, I'm leaving now," I said robotically.

"What is it?" She pleaded.

I sighed. Then leaning against the wall for support, I explained, "Some friends back home were attacked last night, some of them didn't survive. Seth is missing; his fiancée was killed in the attack, along with his sister. My family needs my help to find him, and then I'll take care of those responsible." My fury was returning, just saying it aloud brought back the red tinge.

"Who did this? Aren't the police..."

"Sabrina, the police can't help, they have no clue what they're dealing with. They'll believe that it is some type of white supremacist activity, simply because it was an attack against Native Americans."

Sabrina was staring at me, afraid of asking her questions, and afraid of the answers.

"You know that I'm not like ordinary people Sabrina, so this really shouldn't surprise you. My family and I are not unique in this world; there are others out there like us, although unlike us, they don't care about the safety of humans. My friends are not like us, although like us, they are something different. It was those like us that attacked them, therefore, it is only those like us that can bring them to justice," I said coldly. I hope she understood my cryptic story, I didn't feel like explaining.

"Will you be in danger?" She asked hesitantly.

I smiled. "Don't fear for my safety Sabrina, fear for theirs. They have unleashed a monster more powerful than they can even begin to imagine, and they're about to experience something that would make hell seem like heaven."

She stepped backwards, suddenly aware of the change in my demeanor.

"You have nothing to fear from me Sabrina, no human has to fear me. But those who harm the ones I love, will never live long enough to know true fear."

I then walked over to retrieve my cell phone from the pile of rubble that used to be my desk. "I will call you when everything has been settled, take care of things here," I said calmly.

"Be careful," she whispered.

"No worries, I'll talk to you soon."

Then to further demonstrate my previous explanation, I vanished from the office, moving quickly down the stairs and out the lobby doors without being seen. I certainly wasn't going to waste time driving to Washington; it would take way too long. Running, I could be there in a few hours, and would never have to stop for gas. The problem was that, moving at blinding speed on the highways, it would be easy for most vampires to miss their exits. Thankfully, I had prepared for this.

During one of those nights, as Seth lay sleeping, looking like a peaceful angel… I spent the time studying road maps of the United States and Canada. "Be prepared for anything" was how I thought, so this was just one of those preparations.

Being familiar with the highway system was one thing, but at blinding speed, everything was a blur. Thankfully, being able to read thoughts, I could see upcoming exits through the minds of others. I never needed to see the sign for myself, as long as I could see it through the mind of someone in front of me.

Thankfully, the blinding speed and the constant mental scanning kept my brain too busy to think about anything else. For the entire eight hours, I was solely focused on getting home as quickly as possible.

I found myself greeted with hostility upon my arrival; it was definitely not what I had been expecting.

"This is all _your_ fault!" Jacob yelled as soon as I walked through the door.

"Jacob, that's enough," Carlisle said.

"Jacob has a point," Bella added, "Why didn't he warn us, surely had had seen..."

"I said that's enough," Carlisle snapped, cutting Bella off.

"It's not enough, Carlisle, we deserve answers," Jacob shouted.

"It's not his job to look out for us," Edward added sharply. "He has his own life to live."

"Well thanks to him not being willing to take a few moments of his time, people are dead. But I guess that's no a big deal since he has his own life now, right. Even if that means the death of his supposedly beloved Seth," Jacob scoffed.

Insanity overcome me for a brief moment, and in the moment, Jacob was on the ground writhing in agony.

"Stop Brady, Stop!" Edward shouted as him, Carlisle, and Jasper grabbed me and hauled me from the room.

In an instant my sanity returned, immediately I heard the tearing of clothes and the incensed growl coming from the other room. Jasper quickly disappeared to try to calm the situation, while Bella and Esme tried to reason with the furious wolf.

"I'm sorry," I said. "He doesn't understand, he has no idea how I feel."

"I'd say he knows now," Edward laughed quietly. "I've always wanted to see that."

"Edward, now isn't the time," Carlisle said.

"I know, I'm just trying to lighten the mood a bit. Everyone is at wits end, we need to calm down and deal with this rationally," Edward said.

"I need to talk to everyone, let's go back in there," I said.

"Are you sure about that, I don't think he's changed back yet," Carlisle said.

"I'm not the one who should be worried," I said, adding a grin.

"Just be careful, Jacob is really torn up, he's probably taking this the hardest out of everyone here," Edward said.

When we returned to the room, the gigantic wolf was still glaring in my direction, arched in a position to pounce at any moment. He bared his teeth and snarled as I approached.

"I understand how you feel Jacob. However, you have no idea what _I_ have been going through ever since I left. Accept it or not, I love Seth more than anything in this world, I would gladly give my own life to save his. Yet, knowing that he loved someone else in the way that I loved him, realizing that him and I would never be, it was more pain than I could endure. That is why I left in the first place, because everything here is a reminder of him for me. Once I got to New York, I had to try to move past that pain, I had to try to find a way to live again. The only way I could do that, was to lock every reminder of him away. How do you think it would have felt to me Jacob, seeing daily images of his future with someone else? I would never be able to move on, if I had to suffer with that every day. Besides that, I had no idea that anyone would ever attack, there was no logical reason to believe that. I thought that everyone here was safe, if I had a reason to believe otherwise, believe me when I say that I would have suffered the daily pain, if I could have prevented this from happening."

I was now standing face to face with the giant wolf, I wanted him to look into my eyes and judge them for himself.

Suddenly the air shuttered as Jacob phased back into his human form. He quickly sat in the nearest chair and quickly covered himself with the remnants of his clothing.

"I'm sorry I said what I said, I guess I had no idea how badly things with Seth had affected you. I can understand why you wouldn't want to look into his future. I just wanted to blame someone besides myself, and you were the easiest target since you had the ability to see this. Yet, Edward is right, it wasn't your job, it was mine," Jacob said.

"No Jacob, this wasn't your job. You had no way of knowing this was going to happen, nobody would have even guessed that Victoria still had allies out there," I argued.

"I'm the Alpha, I'm Seth's leader, it was my responsibility."

"Jacob, continuing to blame yourself is only going to hurt those who love you," I said, nodding toward Renesmee, who was curled up in a ball near Jacob's feet. "Besides, blame won't help anything now; we still need to find Seth. What do we know so far, any ideas of where he was headed?"

"It's strange," Jacob said in an exhale. "I've caught him phasing a few times, but only for very brief moments. His thoughts are consumed with the desire for revenge, but there are other thoughts that he is able to block me from seeing. That in itself is strange, but even stranger, is the fact that he is no longer affected by my Alpha commands. It's as if he has found a way to detach himself from my authority, and is acting under another influence."

"When he is in wolf form, have you been able to see or recognize the area that he's in?" I asked.

"No, everything I've seen has been blurred, obscured with his thoughts. I just don't understand what is happening to him," Jacob said.

"If I was to venture a guess, I would say that the sheer pain that he's in, having watched his beloved Liz and his sister being killed, along with his own feeling of guilt for not being able to save them, has caused a disconnection from reality. He is no longer the Seth we knew, he is acting purely from hatred and the desire to avenge the deaths of those he loved," I said.

"We have to find him, we have to stop him," Jacob growled.

"Do we? Doesn't he deserve the right to avenge them?" I asked sharply.

"So you want him to die trying? Is that what you want; is that the easy answer for you to overcome your own pain?" Jacob snarled.

"Careful Jacob," Edward said.

"It's ok," I said. "I'm just thinking about how I would feel in the same situation, I know that I would want to be the one to settle this, I would want to rip their hearts out personally. I also know how I would feel if someone took that opportunity away from me, I would never be able to feel a sense of closure, no matter how long I lived. I just can't help but wonder if there is another way to resolve this situation, while also allowing him the vengeance that he seeks."


	26. Chapter 26

7

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 24**

_Vengeance_

That night I managed to slip away to my room to gain some privacy, I knew I didn't have much time. Everyone was counting on me to lead them to Seth, using the tracking ability I had gained from Demetri. I, on the other hand, had devised my own plan, which didn't involve _them_.

I couldn't deny Seth his revenge, but the others wouldn't be so understanding. They wanted Seth stopped, and I could see from their thoughts, that they had no intention of letting him be involved in our retaliation against the southern coven. If there was one thing I knew, it was that Seth and I were of the same mindset now. Seth wanted revenge for the deaths that the coven had caused, and I wanted revenge on them for causing Seth's pain. Together, we would annihilate the coven, and hopefully in that, Seth would find some peace.

I quickly found a piece of paper and scratched a note to the others. I knew they would be angry with me, they would believe that I was being selfish, I wasn't taking their feelings into consideration… they would be right. Maybe Aro was wrong, maybe I wasn't a leader afterall, because at the point where I should be worrying more about the whole, I could only think about the part… the Seth part.

In an instant, I was out the window and running down the road. I knew they could track my scent, but they couldn't track it through the air.

I pulled the cell phone from my pocket and dialed, the call was quickly answered.

"Brady is that you?" Sabrina's voice crackled.

"Yes, I need you to do something for me. Call the Portland airport and schedule an emergency departure for me, either by private plane or helicopter. I will be traveling to Flagstaff, Arizona."

"Is it windy where you are? I can barely hear you."

"Yes… windy," I replied. "Did you get what I said?"

"Yes, emergency flight from Portland to Flagstaff."

"Exactly. Also, if anyone calls, even my family; do not tell them anything, especially where I'm going, is that clear?"

"What's going on Brady? What's in Flagstaff?"

"That's no important at the moment; I'll explain everything when I can. You'll just have to trust me on this."

"I'll call you back as soon as I confirm the flight; promise me that you'll be careful."

"I promise I'll be fine. No worries."

I shoved the phone back into my pocket and increased my speed. I'm sure the Cullens would expect me to fly out of Seattle, as it was closer, if I was planning to hide my scent. I was hoping that this little detail would cause them to move slower, giving Sabrina an extra bit of time to make the arrangements.

Thankfully, things worked perfectly, as Sabrina was able to charter a private jet, which was able to depart within an hour after I arrived at the airport. I knew that if I had gone by commercial aircraft, they would have been able to track my scent to the departure gate- but that wasn't easily done with private aircraft, which depart directly from the tarmac. Besides, I wasn't staying in Flagstaff, from there I would take a car south to Sedona, and from there I would go by foot to the final destination. So, even if they managed to track the plane to Flagstaff, they wouldn't be able to track my scent after I left the rental agency.

With all the details worked out, I did my best to relax during the two-hour flight. I went back over the note I had left in my mind, hoping that they would follow my instructions.

"I pray that the decision I have chosen is not a mistake, but I have to follow my heart on this.

I know that Seth is doing what he feels he must, and if I were him, I would only hope that my family and friends would respect my decision, and give me the opportunity to regain the pride that I'd lost; the only way to do that, is to avenge the deaths of those that were lost.

If I was still human and this involved an attack by humans, I might feel differently. Justice in the human world is far different from that in our world, where memories and emotions do not fade over time.

Therefore, I have chosen to find Seth, and help him, rather than stop him. I can't be sure that we'll succeed, or even if I'll be able to find him before he finds them.

The only way that you will be able to track us, is with Demetri's help. I know this goes against the grain to contact the Volturi for help, but you will find Aro most willing to help.

Contact him at the e-mail address below; tell him only this;

_Aro, Brady told us to write and ask you to immediately send Demetri to help us with a situation we find ourselves in. He said to mention that this is in repayment for the matter he assisted with in Scotland. Send Demetri alone, this is per Brady's instruction. Time is of the essence._

When Demetri arrives, have him track Seth, as he will be unable to track me. Even though he's never met Seth directly, he can still track him through Jacob's wolf-mind connection.

Again, I'm truly sorry for putting you all through this, but I hope you can find some way to understand why this is the only decision that I could make.

With Love,

-Brady"

As soon as the plane landed, I was out the door, not even waiting for a complete stop. The rental car was waiting as requested; quickly jumping into the driver's seat, the tires squealed as I hit the gas.

Fifteen minutes later I reached Sedona, and quickly ditched the car in a residential neighborhood; it would take days for anyone to take notice of it.

I was back running at full speed, shooting over the desert sand; I was moving so fast that my tracks quickly filled in behind me.

I knew I didn't have time to spare; Seth's future was dire unless I reached him in time. If it hadn't been for wanting to fulfill Seth's wishes, I wouldn't have taken the time to mess with the rental car, but I needed to make sure that the others didn't arrive before he had his chance.

It was a short time later, when I finally made a mental connection with Seth, that I realized my mistake; I was too late. In a rural area of Louisiana, Seth was battling three vampires, but they were too much for him; his life would be over within seconds unless I reached him.

My speed increased beyond what I would have ever believed possible, and within less than a second, I entered the clearing. Instantly all three vampires were on the ground writhing in agony, their shrieks fell upon deaf ears.

The sight I had witnessed when I had arrived in the clearing, were of two vampires holding Seth by his front and rear legs, attempting to pull him in half, while the other vampire had just punched a hole through Seth's stomach.

I rushed to Seth's side, he was on the ground convulsing, still in wolf form. Blood was pouring from the hole in his stomach, while several of his organs protruded from the wound.

Seth looked up at me, his thoughts jumbled in a sea of emotion.

"I'm sorry that I'm late Seth, I tried to get here faster, had I known…"

A sudden convulsion momentarily silenced me, but the pause allowed Seth to focus enough to phase back to human form, although the effort caused him tremendous pain.

Seeing the man I loved lying on the ground, torn to shreds, bleeding and broken, was more than I could handle.

I abruptly rose to my feet, the red tinge had returned, now it was much darker in color, the color of blood.

I approached the writhing vampires, briefly allowing them a moment's reprieve before introducing them to true agony.

They immediately lurched to their feet, adopting a crouched position; the sight of their bright crimson eyes only added fuel to my fire.

"Who are you?" One of the vampires asked.

"Why are you helping him?" Another added. "You are one of us."

I raised a hand, a command to silence the pointless chatter.

"Those who attacked my friends will be shown no mercy. However, those who hurt him," I said, pointing to Seth, "will suffer most of all."

Immediately the three vampires tried to flee, but before they could move, I used Alec's gift to take away their senses.

I then produced a lighter from my pocket. "I hope this gives peace to those who suffered at your hands, may your screams ease their pain."

As soon as the lighter ignited, three plumes of fire shot forward and swirled around the vampires like a flaming vortex. Immediately the vampires began to burn, and at that very instant, I released Alec's gift.

Their screams echoed throughout the forest, continuing even as they floundered around trying to find some way to escape. All too soon, they crumpled to the ground, the screams choking off as they disintegrated into ash.

Instantly I was back at Seth's side.

"Leah would have—liked that," Seth said between gasps. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me Seth, I was too late, I should have been here sooner. If only I hadn't been so selfish, Carlisle would be here too. I'm not a doctor; I don't know how to fix you."

"It doesn't matter, I've lost everything anyway, it's better this way. Besides, you're here, you came for me, that's all that matters now." Suddenly Seth coughed and blood splattered out onto his chest.

"I'm so sorry Seth, I should never have left. If I had stayed, this would never have happened."

"I know why you left, and I don't blame you." Seth struggled for breath, but stopped me when I tried to quiet him. "I don't have much time, so let me say what I've wanted to say for a long time."

Suddenly tears began to flow from my eyes; it was tears of venom, but tears nonetheless. The pain I was now experiencing was beyond anything I had felt before; it was enough pain to bring even a vampire to tears.

Seth smiled. "Edward told me why you left, but I already knew. Brady, from the moment I opened Charlie's door and saw you, we've had a strange connection. I questioned it many times, but each time I quickly decided that it didn't matter. When you left, I felt like a piece of me had gone with you." Then Seth coughed again… more blood poured out.

"Seth, you don't need to…" But he put his hand to my mouth once again.

"I am so sorry that I hurt you, and it was selfish of me to want you to stay. I understand how much the imprinting hurt you, and why you couldn't stick around to see Liz and me together. I wish things could have been different, but all things happen for a reason. Edward told me that you had foreseen the imprinting, but refused to stop it, because you too believe in everything having a reason. Thank you for that, thank you for giving Liz and I that time together. You sacrificed your own heart for ours, a person could ask for no greater friend than what you have been to me."

"I wanted you to be happy Seth, that's all I've ever wanted. I hoped and dreamed many times that you would find that happiness with me, but it was not meant to be."

Seth smiled his most charming smile. "Maybe in our next life." Suddenly he began to cough again, this time with even more blood.

I could feel his life slipping away, the cold darkness was encroaching upon him.

"Would you choose to live, if you could?"

"Why would I want to live? Everything has been taken away from me; I have nothing left to live for."

"Seth, if I asked you to live… for me… would you?"

He just looked up at me, confusion in his thoughts.

"If there was a way, a chance that you could still live, would you be willing to try?"

"Brady, it's time for you to let me go, I could never be the person you want me to be."

"Damned it Seth, I want you to be my friend, and I want you to live! I cannot endure the pain of losing you again."

"I'm sorry, I wish I could say that I'd stay with you, but I don't see how I can survive this."

"With vampire venom!" I croaked, my voice broken.

"Venom is poison to werewolves, you know that."

"I…I don't believe that it is. I have seen those handed-down memories of yours, and I don't believe it was the venom that killed them, I believe they died because of the wounds they suffered during battle. The elders assumed that it was due to the venom, but there was no proof of that. I honestly think that, like you, they were too severely injured to heal themselves, it wasn't a result of the venom."

Seth coughed again, still more blood, his heartbeat becoming more erratic.

"We don't have much time Seth, will you fight to stay with me, or will you abandon me like I abandoned you?"

He smiled, then touched my face. "I guess it won't hurt to try, it's not like I have anything to lose."

I knew that he agreed only because he felt that it wouldn't succeed. He wanted to leave me with the belief that I tried everything to save him, hoping that it might somehow help me to overcome the pain of losing him.

"You're right Seth; it is _me_ who has everything to lose now. So fight to keep your heart beating, if you let your heart stop, the venom won't be able to help you. Fight Seth, fight for me."

I quickly repeated the same process that I had seen, through Edward's memories, which he had performed on Bella. Unfortunately, I didn't have any syringe to inject venom directly into Seth's heart.

I bit several areas along his body, allowing venom to flow into the wounds, before the wounds sealed themselves shut again; the healing power of the venom was miraculous.

When I reached his stomach, I carefully pushed the organs back into his body, and then licked the wound; the venom quickly sealed it closed. I did the same for all of the wounds that covered his battered body. The entire process took only seconds, but by the time I had circled his body, the painful fire was already beginning to engulf him.

It wasn't the pain that I was concerned about; it was his faltering and fainting heartbeat. I knew that if I couldn't get venom into his heart soon, that even if it were going to work, it would be too late.

"I'll be right back Seth, keep fighting, concentrate on keeping your heart beating!"

In a flash, I was sprinting across the fields looking for something, anything that could help. I came across a large farm, and quickly scoured the property, figuring that a farmer would have some type of veterinary equipment. I was in luck, there was a cabinet stocked with medicine, including several large syringes. Although they were plastic, it wasn't like I was planning to store my venom like Edward did for Bella, it only needed to hold together for a few seconds, just enough time for the injection.

I raced back to Seth, hoping that I wasn't too late.


	27. Chapter 27

9

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 25**

_Startling Transformation_

When I reached him, he was twitching and moaning; the venom was searing through his veins. However, his heart still floundered erratically; it was having problems pumping the viscous additive through his veins.

I quickly removed the plunger from the syringe, which wasn't easy considering my hands were trembling; I would have made a horrible doctor. I wasn't sure where the best place was to get a fresh supply of venom, and at the moment, I couldn't produce any from my mouth.

Seth's heart began to thud unnaturally; it was losing the fight. Quickly I bit into my left arm and allowed the venom to flow into the syringe; before it was half-full, the wound was already closed. Then while holding Seth steady with my right hand, I thrust the needle down into his chest with my left, and pushed down hard on the plunger, releasing the venom.

Instantly his heart began to react, it fluttered rapidly for a few seconds, and then began to slow, beating with less and less intensity.

I didn't know what more to do, I wasn't even sure that the venom was going to work, or what it would do to a werewolf if it did work. I only knew that I had to try _something_ to save him, I just hoped and prayed that he would survive.

Seth drifted in and out of consciousness, the loss of blood had drained his energy, but the positive effect was that the venom could move faster through the less obstructed veins. When his heart seemed to find a quick, steady rhythm, I relieved Seth of the searing pain by using the anesthetic property of Alec's gift.

I kept a constant vigil at his side, monitoring his thoughts for any problems, although I figured that if the venom were going to harm him, it would have done so already. Afterall, he had been mere moments from death, but now his body seemed to stabilize. However, it would still be a few hours before I would know anything for sure, until then, I wouldn't allow myself to relax. There was still the mystery of what exactly the venom would do to him; there had never been a werewolf that survived being attacked by a vampire before. As Carlisle had discovered, humans had twenty-three pair of chromosomes, although after transformation to a vampire, they would have twenty-five. Werewolves, though, had twenty-four pairs of chromosomes. So if Seth started out with twenty-four, what would this do to _his_ chromosomal count?

Twelve hours passed without incident, Seth seemed to drift off into some sort of mental sleep, which was odd in itself since vampires never sleep. However, the silence was a nice respite from the awful memories that I had been experiencing through his mind; he was constantly thinking about the attack, over and over again.

It was a pleasant evening as Seth and Liz walked along the beach, they were discussing plans for their wedding. Out of nowhere, a vampire appeared behind Liz, but before Seth could move to defend her, his mind when black, he had been knocked unconscious. When he awoke, he was lying face down on the sand, as he lifted his head; he came face to face with the lifeless body of Liz. Her empty eyes were staring at him, as her expression appeared twisted in horror; blood was still dripping from her mouth. Then he recoiled in further horror as he realized that her body was lying several feet away, she had been decapitated.

Stunned for a few moments, he was finally brought back to reality by the sounds of gnashing teeth, and then the sound of a piercing howl of pain. He turned just in time to see Leah torn in half by two vampires; her lifeless body fell to the ground, where it returned to human form.

Seth glanced from Liz to Leah, trying to awaken from the nightmare, but the images would not go away.

The vampires laughed and joked as they hovered over his decimated sister.

"We certainly don't get to have this much fun down in Louisiana," one of them said.

"No, it's going to suck to have to return home, but maybe we can always visit again," the other added.

The vampires then noticed that Seth was awake; they quickly began to advance toward him. Suddenly out of nowhere Sam, Paul, and Embry appeared, causing the vampires to quickly retreat. Sam approached Seth, while Paul and Embry hovered over Leah's body.

It was when Sam pushed his nose against Seth's face, that Seth finally realized that this wasn't a dream, that his fiancée and his sister were both dead, and _he_ had failed to protect them. Without a word, Seth rose to his feet and launched himself forward, phasing into his wolf form, and tearing off in pursuit of the attacking vampires.

Even though Jacob ordered Seth to stop, the voice of the Alpha did not affect him. Seth wasn't sure why it had no effect, but it probably had to do with the loss of the one he had imprinted upon. Now nothing was going to stop him from destroying those who had robbed him of so much.

Knowing that the other wolves would pursue and try to stop him, Seth kept his mind clear, protecting the secret he had overheard. Once in Seattle, he quickly shifted to human form, where he waited until nightfall to break into an apartment and steal some clothes. From there he boosted a car, a trick he learned from Jacob, and headed for Louisiana. He wasn't sure if the mind link would work from that distance or not, but if not, they would never have enough time to reach him before he sniffed out those responsible.

Seth replayed those memories many times during the first twelve hours of his transformation, although, they weren't the only things he thought of. I was surprised that I frequently appeared in his thoughts as well, but I was more surprised that the most repeated memory of me- was from a few hours earlier, when I appeared at his side after he had battled the vampires. There was something about that moment that he seemed to cling to for some reason, something that overshadowed the memories of our previous time together.

At dusk, about twenty-hours into his transformation, all hell broke loose. In an instant, I completely lost the mental connection to him. The earlier silence when he slept, had been more of a quietness of thought, but now there was nothing. At the same time, Seth's body began to twitch and tremble, as if he were having some sort of seizure. Before I could reach him, his eyes opened, and he sat up in one fluid motion. Without even glancing toward me, he was instantly on his feet.

"Seth, are you ok?" I asked.

He didn't acknowledge me at all, instead he seemed to sniff the air, and then shot off across the clearing. Just before he reached the tree line, he leapt forward and transformed into an immense white wolf.

I tried to follow, but his speed eclipsed my own, and soon a thunderous cracking sound was heard, as he broke the sound barrier. It was amazing that such a large creature, even larger than Jacob, could reach such speeds.

I did my best to keep up, but I was probably making about half his speed. Thankfully, his new scent was easy to trace, it was a smell I had never experienced before. No longer an annoying wet dog smell, his new scent was sweet and pleasant, like the aroma of honey and chamomile.

I was about to burst through a clearing, but stopped myself short because of what I saw in the minds in front of me. Through the sounds of snapping jaws and cracking stone, I caught glimpses of terrified thoughts that were suddenly cut-short.

I stepped forward just enough to see the action that was taking place. In the clearing, there was a large two-story house that was designed in an old Victorian style. Several vampires continued to emerge from the house, like hornets from their disturbed nest, all of them streaking forward to attack the giant white wolf.

Watching the battle, I was stunned into inaction. The vampires were all trying to claw and bite Seth, but none of them was able to penetrate his new skin. Seth would merely shake them off, then turn and snap parts off of them; many heads and other body parts were strewn across the lawn. It was clear that he didn't need any help, and he wasn't letting any of them escape, he was clearly faster and much more agile, even in this new gigantic form.

As I watched, I caught a glimpse of another vampire exiting the house, although his movements were more hesitant and measured. From a quick mental scan, I realized that he was their leader, Antoine, the one responsible for this entire situation. Immediately, my entire vision flooded with the red tinge of hatred, because ultimately, _he_ was the one who hurt Seth, _he_ was the one responsible for all of the killing.

Antoine didn't notice me, instead he watched as Seth continued to dismantle his entire coven. In this moment of panic, he decided it was better to save his own life, than worry about his inept clan.

The red tinge darkened as my contempt for him moved to another level. His coven meant nothing to him, replaceable, that's what he thought, "they're all replaceable."

Scanning Antoine's memories, I found the true reason for their attack, Victoria. She had made quite an impression on him, and when he learned of her death, he immediately suspected the wolves. She had told him how the wolves had been protecting Bella, but she assured him that she would eventually find a way to break through their lines. Her death caused him to formulate a plan for revenge against the wolves, a plan involving a quick and sudden attack, along with killing all who were involved with them.

Apparently, Antoine's plans went awry when a few of the wolves were gathered together at the time, and with numbers, they were able to fight off the coven. His plan fell further apart when another wolf, Jacob, was with a group of vampires, the Cullens, this caused them to abandon their attack and return home. However, he still considered the plan successful because they had managed to kill several of the wolves, he planned to return sometime later and finish the job.

His mistake, he thought, was expecting them to give him and his coven time to regroup. Now, faced with the indestructible white wolf, his thoughts turned to self-preservation. Although, Antoine had made a fatal error in judgment, he wasn't aware that I was now stalking _him_.

Seeing in his mind what direction he intended to flee, I disappeared into the forest to setup an ambush. I could have simply used Jane's gift, or any of the others that I possessed, and ended everything right there. However, I wanted to him to suffer the same type of unexpected attack, which he had laid out for my friends.

Within a few seconds, Antoine turned and dashed off into the forest, his course taking him down the path that I had foreseen. When he reached my position, I was hidden behind a tree. Just as he was about to pass, I delivered a spinning front kick which caught him flush in the throat, sending him cartwheeling through the air. He crashed into the trees, taking several of them down on top of him.

I knew this wouldn't hurt him, but it was certainly fun to watch. The red tinge hadn't dissipated; I was still full of bloodlust.

A few moments later, several of the trees when sailing up into the air, and the mystified Antoine flipped back to his feet, landing about 30 feet in front of me.

He had the familiar crimson eyes, although they were now furrowed in concentration. His hair was inky black, his skin a pale white, clearly not damaged from my surprise attack, other than his clothes, which were showing considerable damage. He quickly ripped off his shredded shirt, allowing his sinewy torso to shimmer in the moonlight.

It was now clear to me that he was considerably older than the other vampires that I had met, obviously having been transformed at a much later age. Although he didn't have wrinkles or any other typical signs of being older, he definitely didn't possess the youthful appearance that most of the other vampires did.

"Who are you?" Antoine hissed.

"My name doesn't matter, you won't live long enough to have time to commit it to memory anyway," I replied, venom welling in my mouth.

"You had better flee while you can, if you know what's good for you," Antoine suggested nervously.

He was fairly confident that with his gift, he would win, but the fact that I was able to surprise him left him unnerved.

I smiled. "I'm sorry, but fleeing isn't in my nature. Especially since the payback I intend to give, is so befitting your crime."

"Payback? What have I ever done to you? I don't even know you."

"Payback for my friends. Although, this is mostly payback for the one I love, and all of the pain you caused him."

"Who are you talking about? Are you from one of the Texas covens?"

"How quickly you forget. I know that you remember my friend, he was the enormous white wolf that just dismantled your entire coven back there." I gestured with my thumb over my shoulder.

Suddenly his face seemed to twist in terror, putting the pieces together.

"Yes, I am from the coven in Washington, and we consider the wolves our friends. You made a fatal mistake by attacking them, and now you will pay for that mistake with your life."

"You think so do you? I'm afraid you've made a fatal mistake of your own, by thinking that you can beat me. You will soon find out how powerful I really am."

I nodded. "That's exactly what the Volturi initially thought, until I made it clear that I could defeat them as well. But, you're more than welcome to try." Reaching forward with my right hand, I curled it back, encouraging him forward.

The mention of the Volturi name brought him up short, his mind quickly tried to process the implications, and whether or not I was telling the truth. He _had_ heard of the run-in between the Washington coven and the Volturi, but he never expected them to side with the wolves. It was because of this rumor, that he hadn't planned to involve our coven in the first place.

"You made another mistake by assuming that the wolves were responsible for Victoria's death. It wasn't the wolves, it was our coven annihilated Victoria and her band of newborns, the wolves merely cleaned up the leftovers."

The mention of her name caused Antoine to refocus himself, and after learning the truth, he bared his teeth and crouched for attack.

"Then after I have finished with you, I will build a new army and we will destroy your coven."

I laughed wryly, and once again gestured him forward.

He sprung at me with catlike precision, and as he did, I felt a jolt shoot through my body. Just as he was about to touch me, I spun around and landed a solid backfist to his face. The force sent him flying backwards, taking out three more trees in the process.

I waited patiently with my arms crossed, as he dug himself out again.

"How did you… how were you able to move?" Antoine asked, trying to collect himself.

"You mean how did I evade your gift?" I laughed. "I'm sure that was quite a shock, usually your gift momentarily paralyzes someone, giving you enough time to kill them."

"You didn't answer my question," Antoine demanded.

"No, I didn't. It's not really important, especially, as I said before, you will be dead soon anyway."

Realizing that my earlier comment about the Volturi may have indeed been true, he quickly shifted his focus toward escape.

"I'm afraid those thoughts are pointless as well, there will be no escape for you today."

His shocked expression and scattered thoughts reflected his sudden comprehension of the situation.

"I'll see you in hell," he hissed, and then threw himself forward in another vain attempt to kill me.

Before he reached the halfway point, I allowed him to experience Jane's gift, which sent him instantly to the ground, where he writhed in agony.

I crouched down in front of him, merely three feet away from his twisted, pain-filled face.

"Hell will seem like a blissful heaven compared to what you're about to experience," I said unashamedly.

I then used Zafrina's gift and filled his mind with images of the most twisted forms of torture I could imagine, all while Jane's gift continued to torment him. Occasionally, I would cease Jane's gift, only to immediately replace it with Kate's gift, sending the sensation of electrocution through his entire body.

When I ran out of torturous images of my own imagination, I supplemented it with the most painful memories that I had collected from other vampires. Only the most emotionally heart-wrenching memories and I had gathered enough of those, including some of my own.

After several minutes of this game, I realized that I needed to return to Seth and make sure he was ok. The sounds of carnage had ceased, and there was a sudden silence from the clearing that made me uneasy.

I rose to my feet, and turned my back on the gasping vampire. As I walked away, I retrieved the lighter from my pocket.

"I believe you said you'd see me in hell," I said, "well… don't wait up."

With a flick of my thumb, the lighter ignited and the flame shot backwards, swirling around the agonized vampire on the ground. His screams began again, but I did not wait around for the impending silence that would follow.

Within seconds, I was back in the clearing, but I was drawn up short once again. Seth was surrounded by five large wolves, although, each of them was now dwarfed by the gigantic white wolf. They were snarling and nipping at Seth, although their bites seemed as ineffective as the vampires had been. Seth, however, was merely fending off their attacks- he was not fighting back.

They seemed to dance around the pieces of the vampire body parts; there had been no fire to burn them yet. It was obvious that there was no longer a mind-link between Seth and the others, much the same as his thoughts were now closed to me as well.

Suddenly familiar vampires began to appear in the clearing as well: Edward, Carlisle, Demetri, Emmett, and then the rest of the Cullens. They quickly took up an attacking posture as they eyed the unrecognized figure of Seth.

I quickly raced into the center of the action, placing myself directly in front of Seth.

"Stop! Everyone Stop! This is Seth!" I shouted.

The wolves jumped backwards at my proclamation, while the Cullens remained in their guarded crouched position, their minds swirled with skepticism and confusion.

Suddenly a loud 'huff' of breath came from behind me. It caused me to realize that I had no idea what Seth really thought anymore; maybe the transformation had somehow affected his sense of self. Maybe he was no longer the Seth that I knew and loved, maybe he had truly become a monster.

I slowly turned around to discover the truth for myself, by facing him for the first time since his transformation. Maybe he hated me now, for not allowing his life to end, maybe he wanted to kill me now too.


	28. Chapter 28

10

A NEW DAWN

**Chapter 26**

_A New Dawn Breaks_

I cautiously lifted my head, and came face to face with the most amazing pair of topaz eyes. Seth appeared startled and flinched backwards, but then he inched forward again, gazing at me strangely. For a few seconds I wondered why his eyes weren't glowing bright red, but those thoughts were overshadowed by his intensely emotional gaze.

We were quickly interrupted by the return of the growls from the wolves; clearly, they wanted an explanation.

Realizing that Seth no longer presented a danger to anyone, I swung around to address them.

"Seth has changed—a bit," I said, knowing it was a major understatement.

"What happened to him?" Carlisle asked.

Before I could answer, I heard several gasps erupt from the vampires, including a shocked whine from the wolves. It was clear that they were intently focused on something behind me; I didn't need to read their thoughts to know that it had something to do with Seth.

I turned slowly to follow their gaze, and came face to face with Seth, now in his… vampire form? No, not vampire, he was something else completely. His skin was paler yes, but his eyes had turned to topaz, not red, and even more startling, his heart was still beating. He was standing there staring at me, completely naked, although he didn't seem concerned by this; in fact, I don't think he even noticed.

He was smiling at me with such an innocent expression; I wasn't sure what to think. It was then that I suddenly recalled seeing that same expression on his face once before; it had been a scene from someone else's memories. The way he now looked at me, it was like a blind man seeing the sun for the first time.

My hand flew to my mouth, my body trembled in shock; suddenly everything went black. Although it only lasted for a brief moment, when I came to, Seth had me cradled in his arms.

"Are you ok?" He asked, a new musical ring flowed through his voice.

I was momentarily unable to speak, his beautiful topaz eyes smoldered with intensity as they looked deeply into mine. All I could do was smile back at him, as the tears of venom began to flow again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," he said, his voice singing to me.

"It's ok," was all I could manage to say.

"Do you want me to put you down?"

I sighed, then smiled. "Not really, I think I like it here."

He smiled back at me, his eyes blazing; this caused me to feel light-headed again.

Suddenly several people were clearing their throats, bringing us both back to reality. Even so, Seth was hesitant about releasing me; he looked to me for encouragement.

"I guess you should probably let me down, I have some explaining to do," I said hesitantly.

"You don't have to if you don't want to. We can just disappear into the woods together," Seth replied, not a hint of joking in his tone.

"It's an appealing thought, but I don't want them to be more upset with me than they already are. Afterall, they are our family."

Seth shrugged, and then with a wink, he returned me to my feet.

The dizziness wasn't quite gone, and I grabbed onto Seth's shoulders to steady myself. We found our faces mere inches from each other, our eyes still locked in an endless blissful gaze.

Impatient wolf howls echoed through the clearing, they were clearly not amused at this sudden turn of events.

With a heavy sigh of reluctance, I released my hands from Seth's shoulders, and turned to face the bewildered audience.

"As I was saying before…" I began to say, but was interrupted.

"Before you start," Edward said, "I think it might be appropriate for Seth to cover himself." He then stepped forward, removed his shirt, and offered it to Seth. Seth quickly wrapped the shirt around his waist, tying it like a small sarong. He smiled at Edward in appreciation, but did not speak. Instead, he moved even closer to me, hovering over me protectively.

"When I found Seth, he had been badly injured by the three vampires that he had confronted, two of which were the ones responsible for…," I hesitated, not sure if I should say it.

"Go ahead, I'm ok," Seth whispered from behind.

"Two of them were responsible for Liz and Leah's death."

Seth suddenly pressed his forehead against the back of mine; he clearly wasn't as ok as he had claimed.

Reluctantly, I pressed on. "I managed to destroy the three before they could do any more damage, but Seth's injuries were already beyond repair."

"If you hadn't rushed out on your own, if you had brought Carlisle along, maybe Seth would have been fine," Bella hissed.

"It's not _his_ fault," Seth snapped angrily. "He gave me what I wanted, he allowed me the opportunity to get revenge, and _I_ failed. The rest of you didn't care about what I wanted; you only wanted what _you_ wanted for me. Brady was the only one who understood, he knows me better than any of you."

I didn't turn to see Seth's expression, but I could tell when Bella stepped backwards, and Edward moved protectively to her side, that it was probably quite intense.

I rocked backwards, pressing myself against Seth's rigid angry form. The action caused him to relax immediately; he leaned his head forward, pressing it against mine once more.

"Although Seth didn't want to be saved, I begged him to allow me to try. I wasn't convinced that vampire venom was deadly to werewolves, as had been suggested; nothing in the visions handed down were convincing enough. Besides, we had a 50/50 chance, and I was willing to try _anything_ to save him."

"Thank you," Seth murmured quietly in my ear.

Difficult as it was, I ignored him for the moment. "As you can see, the results were quite… unexpected."

The wolves huffed; my comment was definitely an understatement.

"What is he now?" Jacob asked, through his thoughts.

"What does he look like, Jacob?" I asked. "He's a hybrid, just like Renesmee. He's half-vampire, and half-werewolf."

Jacob recoiled at the comparison, wrinkling his nose in disagreement.

"I know you all think that I have somehow taken Seth away from you, by turning him into something different than he was. But he is still Seth, just like Bella is still Bella," I said, addressing the wolves, but more so Jacob. "Although now, he is apparently more powerful than any of us."

I turned back toward Seth, to gauge his reaction. He simply shrugged his shoulders and grinned at me widely, his eyes blazed once again, causing me to lose focus.

"What do you mean, more powerful?" Carlisle asked, interrupting another starry-eyed interlude.

Regaining my focus, I turned back to our audience. "From what I have gathered, Seth is not only immune to both vampire claws and teeth, but werewolf teeth as well; he is also immune to all my abilities."

"You mean you can't hear his thoughts?" Edward asked intently.

"No, I can't," I said, shaking my head. "Ever since he fully transformed, in record time I might add, I haven't been able to hear him. It has been quite frustrating, believe me."

"Now you know how I feel," he said, nodding his head toward Bella.

"If you want to know what I'm thinking, all you need to do is ask," Seth said softly, "I will never keep any secrets from you."

The wolves reacted to his comment with thoughts of disgust and revulsion, while several of the Cullens simply shook their heads.

"What about the wolves?" Carlisle asked. "Can they hear his thoughts?"

Seth shook his head. "That is why they attacked me, because they couldn't hear me."

"Aren't you thirsty? A newborn vampire should be almost dying of thirst by now." Carlisle said.

All of us were extremely curious now, I hadn't thought about that aspect until Carlisle mentioned it.

"No, I don't feel anything. Well, I do feel a bit hungry I guess," Seth said.

"You don't feel any intense burning in your throat?" Edward asked.

"No, nothing like that," Seth replied.

"What are you hungry for?" I asked.

The smile that appeared, could only hint at one thing.

"What type of _food_ are you hungry for?" I clarified.

His smile continued, but his eyes momentarily shifted back toward the crowd. "Honestly, I could go for a large steak. Maybe I'll have to eat a whole cow or two on the way back," he said, adding a musical laugh.

"This is very strange," Carlisle mused. "You don't crave blood, instead you want solid food. Then there is the color of your eyes; they're not bright red like a newborn vampire, they're more a shade of…"

"Golden topaz," I added, feeling a glowing smile cross my face.

My comment caused Seth to nuzzle his nose against the back of my neck, precisely the kind of reaction I had been hoping for.

Although his actions were readily apparent, everyone was completely mystified as to what was happening with him. The wolves thought I had _done_ something to him to cause this reaction, while most of the Cullens simply had no idea what it was about. Since the wolves couldn't read his thoughts, nor could Edward, they couldn't fathom the explanation that was about to come.

"I know you all are wondering what has happened to Seth, in regards to the relationship between him and I. Since I cannot read his mind, I honestly don't know for sure, but I have a good idea. Although I never thought it was possible, because it has never occurred before in the entire werewolf existence. Then again, Seth is now a completely new species, so apparently anything is possible."

"What are you talking about Brady?" Sam demanded in thought.

"If you want to know specifics, I guess Seth is the only one who can answer those questions," I said.

Turning toward Seth, but stepping slightly away and avoiding his mesmerizing gaze, I said, "Sam wants to know, or rather, everyone wants to know, what is going on between us."

Reluctantly, Seth shifted his focus away from me, and assembled the thoughts in his head. "Apparently imprinting is not a once in a lifetime event."

The wolves immediately howled in unison, a rebuke to his statement.

"Hear me out first before you pass judgment or form opinions," Seth retorted.

It was a few moments before the wolves grudgingly became silent.

"Liz was an amazing person, and I truly loved her with all my heart," Seth began again. "However, even before Liz, Brady and I had a unique connection. I felt the pull between us from the moment we first met, but I didn't understand it. I avoided thinking about it, and just accepted it as simply a bond of friendship, as there was no physical desire back then." Seth began to pace in a small circle, a circle that revolved around me. "Even when I imprinted with Liz, there was still that strange connection with Brady that remained. It was unlike any of the imprintings that I had observed through the other wolves. Normally, when you imprint, you lose all connections to everything and everyone else, except the object of your imprinting. That wasn't the case with Liz; I still maintained that connection with Brady."

"What do you feel about Liz now?" Jacob thought.

"Jacob wants to know what you feel about Liz now," I relayed.

Seth sighed. "Honestly… nothing. It may sound horrible considering the situation, but I no longer feel anything toward anyone from my past, the only one who matters to me now, is Brady."

"What about your dead sister," Jacob barked.

"Jacob, that's uncalled for," I growled.

"I'm sure it's hard for them all to understand," Seth said calmly. "However, I now understand what it's like to feel the effects of a true imprinting. There is nothing outside of the one you imprint upon, there is no one you desire more, than that person."

Seth suddenly stopped in front of me. He lifted my chin upwards so that I was staring into his beautiful eyes once again. "I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to catch up to you Brady, but rest assured that I will make it up to you."

I felt dizzy once again, as the weight of this moment and its implications fell upon me. Once again, everything went black, and again I awakened to find myself in Seth's arms.

"Stop doing that Seth," I said.

"Stop doing what?" he asked innocently.

"Stop mesmerizing me with your eyes, it makes me dizzy."

Seth laughed. "Sorry, I'll try not to do that again, but I can't make any promises."

Again, the throat clearing sounds came from the crowd.

"I'd still like to know…" Carlisle began to say, as they reclaimed our attention.

"I think we have plenty of time for questions and answers later," I interrupted, "right now, I think Seth is hungry."

Seth smiled at me, picking up on the double entendre. Emmett's chuckle signaled the fact that Seth wasn't the only one who picked up on it.

"So are you both coming back home then?" Carlisle asked.

"Yes, we'll meet you all back home, and then we can talk about everything in more detail," I said. Then turning to Demetri, "Thank you Demetri, for helping the Cullens with this highly unusual situation."

"It was no problem at all," Demetri said, "I'm glad I could help."

"Be sure to offer my thanks and best regards to Aro, and tell him that we'll be stopping by sometime in the near future."

Demetri nodded his head in understanding, clearly catching the 'we' part of my statement.

"Shall we go," I said, turning to face my topaz-eyed prince.

"I think this belongs to you, Edward," Seth said, removing the shirt from around his waist, "I won't be needing it anymore."

"Um, maybe you should hold onto it, I think appearing back at Sue's completely naked might be too much of a shock for her," Edward said jokingly.

"I'll carry it," I said, reaching out and taking the shirt from Edward. "Although, we'll probably stop by the house to clean up before he goes to see Sue."

Emmett chuckled again, causing Edward to roll his eyes.

"Let's go Seth," I said.

Seth nodded his head in agreement, and then lurched forward toward the forest, phasing into his wolf form before he reached the trees.

"I'll see you guys later," I said with a smile. Then, in a flash, I was dashing off in pursuit of the gigantic, snowy-white, chamomile and honey scented wolf.

It didn't take long to catch him, since he had stopped to wait for me just a short distance into the forest. As I approached him, his eyes brightened, like a child's eyes on Christmas morning.

Instead of turning and racing on again, he turned his body toward me. He must have seen the confusion in my expression, because he then shifted his weight sideways, almost knocking me over. I then realized what he wanted, and I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Quickly I scampered up onto the giant wolf's back, which brought a sudden purring vibration to his body. Without hesitation, Seth shot off into the darkness, heading northward.

I gripped onto his fur for support, as we rocketed forward faster and faster. Even with being a vampire, everything was still just a passing blur to me. The wind at that speed created very intense pressure against us, I was sure that anyone near us was hearing the sonic boom we were leaving behind. I suddenly began to feel cold, definitely not a something I ever thought I'd feel again, but the speed was making the air temperature around us feel almost subzero. I was thankful that, after only a few minutes, Seth abruptly stopped in an open area of grassland.

I climbed down off his back, a bit confused about why we had stopped. Seth looked at me, gave me an open-mouthed huff, and then nodded his head forward. Following his gaze, I then realized the reason for our pause; I sighed in understanding; as directly in front of us were a herd of cows.

Seth wasn't kidding when he mentioned earlier about eating two cows, because that is exactly what he did. He literally ate them, bones and all; there was nothing left behind, no evidence of their gruesome end.

When he was finished, he approached me shyly; blood was evident on his muzzle. He stopped mere inches from my face, and peered down at me innocently. Without thought of how it might look, not that there was anyone watching anyway, I started licking the blood from around his mouth. I wasn't sure if it was because of the proximity to fresh blood, or my desire to kiss him now that we were alone, but whatever the compulsion, I didn't resist it.

Almost instantly, the air around me began to pulse; I suddenly found myself caught up in two very strong arms. My tongue was suddenly met by another, as our long-overdue passion was finally realized.

My shirt became the first casualty, as Seth quickly disposed of that. When he reached for my pants, I stepped back in protest.

"Um, Seth, unlike you, I don't have another form that I can shift into, I think I need to keep these in one piece," I said, giggling shyly.

"Sorry, I, uh, I guess I got a bit carried away," Seth said, blushing a little.

I was then caught up in the realization that he could blush; there was a strange unique coloration to his skin. It wasn't the brown tone that he used to have, but it wasn't the pale white that most vampires became. He was now more of a pale, Nordic tone, something resembling the skin tone I had had before I became a vampire.

"What?" He asked, noticing me staring at him.

"I was just appreciating your new look," I said.

Seth smiled. "I suddenly feel very self-conscious now, considering that I'm the only one naked."

"Funny, it was ok back in the crowd, but _now_ that we're alone, you are self-conscious," I laughed.

"That was different, I wasn't thinking about the things then, that I'm thinking about now," he said, another blush appeared.

I then looked down and noticed exactly what he was referring too. Immediately there was a loud ripping sound, my pants suddenly fell to my feet; they were completely shredded in my haste. Instantly I launched myself into his arms, the impact sent us both tumbling to the ground.

"I thought you wanted to save your pants," Seth chuckled.

"I still have Edward's shirt," I reminded.

For the next few moments, words were replaced my actions, as our passion spoke for us. Then, abruptly, Seth became serious.

"I've never done anything like this before, so please tell me if I do anything that hurts you," he said.

I was caught off-guard by this revelation. "Really? I thought for sure that you and Liz…"

"No, we never did," he interrupted, shaking his head. "She wanted to, but I kept telling her that I wanted to wait until we were married. Even though that was a lie, the real reason was because something told me it wasn't right. I never understood why I felt that way, until now. With you, everything suddenly feels right, it feels like how I had always imagined it would feel."

I was suddenly overcome with such a feeling of extreme happiness that I began to sing softly into his ear, it was the rest of the song that I had started singing the morning we faced the Volturi:

"But touch my tears—with your lips

Touch my world—with your fingertips

And we—can have—forever

And we—can love—forever

Forever—is our today."

THE END


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